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SCUDDER  (SAMUEL  H.).  BUTTERFLIES: 
Their  Structure,  Changes,  and  Life-Histories,  with 
Special  Reference  to  American  Forms.  Being  an 
application  of  the  "Doctrine  of  Descent"  to  the 
study  of  Butterflies.  With  an  Appendix  of  prac- 
tical instructions.  By  Samuel  H.  Scudder.  With 
numerous  illustrations.  New  York :  Henry  Holt 
&  Co.,  1 88 1.  Square  8vo,  pp.  ix,  322. 


BUTTERFLIES:  Their  Structure,  Changes,  and 
Life-Histories,  with  Special  Reference  to  American 
Forms.  Being  an  application  of  the  "  Doctrine  of 
Descent"  to  the  study  of  Butterflies.  With  an 
Appendix  of  practical  instructions.  By  Samuel 
H.  Scudder.  With  numerous  illustrations.  New 
York:  Henry  Holt  &  Co.,  1881.  Square  8vo, 
pp.  ix,  322. 

ENTOMOLOGY.  BUTTERFLIES:  Their  Struc- 
ture, Changes,  and  Life-Histories,  with  Special 
Reference  to  American  Forms.  Being  an  appli- 
cation of  the  "Doctrine  of  Descent"  to  the 
study  of  Butterflies.  With  an  Appendix  of  prac- 
tical instructions.  By  Samuel  H.  Scudder.  With 
numerous  illustrations.  New  York  :  Henry  Holt 
&  Co.,  1881.  Square  Svo,  pp.  ix,  322. 


BUTTERFLIES, 


BUTTERFLIES 


STRUCTURE,  CHANGES,  AND  LIFE-HISTORIES 


SPECIAL  REFERENCE   TO   AMERICAN  FORMS 


BEING  AN  APPLICATION  OF  THE  "  DOCTRINE  OF  DESCENT  "  TO  THE 
STUDY  OF  BUTTERFLIES.    WITH  AN  APPENDIX  OF 

PRACTICAL   INSTRUCTIONS 


BY 

SAMUEL    II.    SCUDDER 


NEW  YORK 
HENRY  HOLT  AND   COMPANY 

1881 


BFOLOGY 
LIBRARY 


Copyright,  1881, 
By  HENRY  HOLT  &  CO. 


PREFATORY   NOTE. 


A  BOX  of  common  butterflies  hanging  on  the  wall  of  a 
fellow-student's  room  in  college  first  introduced  the  author 
to  the  enjoyments  of  a  naturalist's  life.  He  ventures  to  hope 
that  the  following  pages,  in  which  he  gathers  the  observations 
and  reflections  of  many  years — the  outcome  of  his  friend's 
collection— may  induce  many  another  to  enter  this  interesting 
and  fruitful  field,  where  Nature  is  ever  new,  and  many  a 
problem  still  remains  unsolved. 

The  author  is  indebted  to  Hon.  CHARLES  L.  FLINT  for  the 
liberal  permission  to  take  electrotypes  from  the  original  wood- 
cuts illustrating  the  butterflies  in  Harris'  Treatise  on  Insects 
Injurious  to  Vegetation  ;  these  woodcuts,  drawn  by  SONREL 
and  engraved  by  MARSH,  are  masterpieces  of  xylographic 
art  and  illustrate  the  best  work  of  American  engravers. 
The  BOSTON  SOCIETY  OP  NATURAL  HISTORY,  Dr.  A.  S. 
PACKARD,  Jr.,  and  Messrs.  W.  H.  EDWARDS  and  WILLIAM 
SAUNDERS  have  also  permitted  the  use  of  a  few  cuts  in  their 
possession.  A  considerable  number  have  been  procured  from 
Mr.  C.  V.  RILEY,  and  a  few  from  the  publishers  of  the  Ameri- 
can Naturalist  through  Mr.  EDWARD  BURGESS,  whose  paper  on 
the  action  of  the  butterfly's  trunk  they  illustrate.  Mr.  BUR- 
GESS has  also  kindly  drawn  a  couple  of  anatomical  figures. 
All  of  these  are  properly  credited.  The  others  are  from  draw- 
ings in  the  author's  possession,  and,  with  the  exception  of  half 
a  dozen  woodcuts  engraved  by  the  Messrs.  ANDREWS,  were 
prepared  for  photographic  reproduction  by  Mr.  J.  S.  KINGSLEY. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

PREFATORY  NOTE,       ...     \-       -       .       -       -       -       v 
INTRODUCTION, ,.<..'  \»  1 

STRUCTURE. 

CHAPTER 

I.  THE  EGG, 4 

II.  THE  CATERPILLAR,        -  13 

III.  THE  CHRYSALIS,  34 

IV.  THE  BUTTERFLY,    -  51 
V.  THE  INTERNAL  ORGANS  OF  CATERPILLARS,  -  76 

VI.  THE  TRANSFORMATIONS  OF  THE  INTERNAL  ORGANS 

DURING  GROWTH,        -  89 

LIFE   AND    RELATIONSHIP. 

VII.  HABITS,  97 

VIII.  SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES,  -  127 

IX.  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES,  WITH  FURTHER 

HISTORIES,  -        -       -       -       -        -    159 

X.  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES  IN  COLORING  AND  STRUC- 
TURE,       ......  .    180 

XI.  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT  OF  ORNAMENTA- 
TION, -    207 
XII.  ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION,  -        -        -  226 
XIII.  GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION — THE  COLONIZATION 

OF  NEW  ENGLAND,     -  -        260 

APPENDIX. 

I.  INSTRUCTIONS  FOR  COLLECTING,  REARING,  PRESERV- 
ING, AND  STUDYING,  -        -       -       -       -       -       -    273 


Vlll  CONTENTS. 

II.  SYSTEMATIC  LIST  OF  BUTTERFLIES,  WITH  THEIR  SCI- 
ENTIFIC AND  POPULAR   NAMES,  AND  REFERENCES 

TO  THE  ILLUSTRATIONS,  297 

III.  LIST  OF  THE  FOOD-PLANTS  OF  THE  CATERPILLARS  OP 

AMERICAN  BUTTERFLIES,  -       -       ....    307 
INDEX,        -       -       -  """"  -       -       -       ...        311 


"The  study  of  butterflies— creatures  selected  as  the  types  of  airiness 
and  frivolity— instead  of  being  despised,  will  some  day  be  valued  as  one 
of  the  most  important  branches  of  biological  science." 

BATES,  Naturalist  on  Amazons. 


\ 


USTTEODUOTIOK 


THIS  little  work  treats  of  butterflies — the  higher 
families  of  the  great  order  Lepidoptera,  or  scaly- 
winged  insects.  They  do  not  form  a  scientifically 
natural  group,  since  their  sole  distinction  from 
other  Lepidoptera  lies  in  the  character  of  the 
antennae  ;  and  this  itself  is  a  point  of  great  vari- 
ability ;  but  for  convenience'  sake,  and  with  this 
reservation,  we  may  use  the  term  butterfly  as  a 
popular  expression. 

The  foundation  of  our  study  will  be  laid  upon 
an  examination  of  the  earlier  stages  of  the  butter- 
fly. Ruskin  has  declared*  that  the  prevalent 
"  instinct  for  the  study  of  ...  the  lower 
forms  of  undeveloped  creatures  ...  is  the 
precise  counterpart  of  the  forms  of  idolatry  (ex- 
pressed in  the  worship  of  unclean  beasts),  which 
were  in  great  part  the  cause  of  final  corruption  in 
ancient  mythology  and  morals."  Yet  not  only 
shall  we  find  in  these  lower  stages  forms  of  ex- 
quisite beauty,  little  known  even  to  the  world  of 

*  Fors  Clavigera,  Letter  53,  pp.  138,  139,  note. 


2  INTRODUCTION. 

naturalists,  but  the  closer  we  examine  their  struc- 
ture and  development,  the  more  abundant  proofs 
shall, w,e  find  of  harmonious  adaptations  to  their 
surroundings  ;  and  just  as  their  organization  ever 
foretokens  a  more  perfect  form,  so  shall  we  be  led 
to  an  increasing  apprehension  of  the  consummate 
skill  by  which  is  produced  and  upheld  that 
wonderful  co-ordination  of  structure,  form,  devel- 
opment, and  relation  to  the  outside  world,  which 
the  complete  study  of  any  creature  exhibits.  It 
is  the  growth  rather  than  the  perfection  of  any 
organism  which  is  of  supreme  interest ;  and  not 
until  we  penetrate  into  the  deepest  mysteries  of 
the  earliest  and  most  humble  existence  of  organic 
forms,  can  we  have  any  conception  of  the  marvels 
of  life  and  growth,  or  apprehend  the  workings  of 
the  Creator. 

When  we  study  the  perfect  insect,  we  shall 
trace  the  mode  by  which  its  new  organs,  external 
and  internal,  have  been  developed  from  strangely 
different  parts  in  the  immature  stages.  Then  we 
shall  take  the  greatest  pains  to  get  at  the  creat- 
ure's habits  of  life;  "  know  all  its  ingenuities, 
humors,  delights,  and  intellectual  powers  ;  that 
is  to  say,  what  art  it  has,  and  what  affection  ; 
and  how  these  are  prepared  for  its  external 
form  ;"  *  we  shall  watch  the  procession  of  the 

*  Ruskin,  "  The  Eagle's  Nest,"  p.  154. 


INTRODUCTION.  3 

seasons,  and  follow  the  varied  histories  of  our 
friends  at  different  epochs  of  the  year ;  inspect 
their  habitations,  and  see  what  preparation  they 
make  for  the  long  repose  of  winter.  We  shall 
devote  much  space  to  their  coloring, — not  to  dilate 
upon  its  exquisite  delicacy  or  wonderful  play, 
but  to  study  the  curious  laws  by  which  it  varies 
in  the  same  species  at  different  seasons,  or  in  dif- 
ferent latitudes ;  by  which  each  sex,  after  its 
own  fashion,  vies  with  the  other  in  adornment ; 
and  by  which  new  forms  are  apparently  originat- 
ing under  our  very  eyes.  Finally,  we  shall  treat 
of  the  ancestry,  present*  affinities,  and  distribu- 
tion of  these  insects  ;'  endeavor  to  discover  what 
the  primeval  butterfly  was  like,  what  sort  of  #n 
egg  it  laid,  what  the  cycle  of  its  changes,  and  how 
we  should  arrange  the  living  forms  ;  all  these 
topics  we  shall  illustrate  by  almost  exclusive 
reference  to  the  butterflies  of  America,  and 
especially  of  our  own  New  England,  and  close  by 
showing  how  New  England  was  colonized  with 
its  present  butterfly  inhabitants. 


CHAPTEE  I. 

THE  EGG. 
x 

LIKE  all  other  lepidopterous  insects,  the  but- 
terfly is  well  known  to  undergo  peculiar  and,  to 
outward  appearance,  very  sudden  transforma- 
tions. The  butterfly  with  maternal  instinct  lays 
its  eggs  upon  a  certain  food -plant ;  this  egg  pro- 
duces a  worm-like  animal  called  a  caterpillar, 
which  feeds  voraciously  upon  the  plant,  casts  its 
skin  several  times  during  its  growth,  and  at  the 
last  moulting  emerges  as  a  pupa  or  chrysalis  ;  at 
this  period  the  insect  appears  in  swaddling- 
clothes,  all  its  appendages  neatly  encased  upon 
its  breast,  and  itself  almost  completely  helpless 
and  motionless ;  to  ordinary  view  as  different  as 
possible  from  the  aerial  creature,  with  variegated 
tremulous  wings,  we  see  shortly  after,  sipping 
honey  from  an  open  flower,  or  dancing  merrily  in 
the  sunlight.  Changes  similar  to  these  are  now 
known  to  occur  throughout  no  inconsiderable 
portion  of  the  animal  kingdom,  but  they  are 
most  familiar  to  the  popular  mind,  and  were  first 
known  to  the  ancients  in  the  insect  tribes,  and 
particularly  in  the  butterflies. 

Our  first  chapters  will  deal  with  the  earlier 


THE  EGG. 


FIG.  1.-: 


of 


Thorybes  Pylades, 
X28. 


stages  of  the  butterfly :  the  egg,  the  caterpillar, 
and  the  chrysalis. 

The  eggs  laid  by  these  fairy-like  creatures  are 
composed  externally  of  a  thin  elastic  p'ellicle ; 
they  are  no  larger  than  a  pin's 
head  ;  indeed  I  know  of  only  one 
whose  diameter  is  a  twentieth  of 
an  inch,  or  a  little  more  than  a 
millimetre.  Yet  when  examined 
under  a  lens  we  may  look  far 
before  discovering  objects  more 
graceful  in  form  or  delicate  in  marking.  Their 
vaulted  summits  might  give  useful  hints  to  the 
architect ;  indeed,  chancing  to  study  some  of  our 
New  England  forms  during  a  winter  spent  in 
Egypt,  I  was  greatly 
struck  by  their  sin- 
gular resemblance  to 
the  traceried  domes 
of  the  Cairo  mosques 
[Fig.  1].  The  ex- 
treme summit  is  al- 
ways covered  by  a 
little  rosette  of  cells 
of  the  most  exquisite 

FIG.  2.— Micropyle  of  egg  of  Basilarchici 

delicacy,    often    re-  ArchiPPu8,  x 

quiring  some  of  the  higher  powers  of  the  micro- 
scope to  discern,  but  arranged  in  such  definite 
patterns,  that,  in  looking  at  them,  we  seem  to  be 


THE  EGG. 


peering  through  the  circular  rose-window  of  a 
miniature  Gothic  cathedral  [Figs.  2-5].    The  cells 


i 


FIG.  3.— Micropyle  of  esrg  of 
Brenthis  Myrina,  X  40. 


FIG.  4.— Micropyle  of  egg  of  Heodes 
Hypophlaeas,  X  100. 


O 


FIG.  6.— Egg  of 

Jasoniades  Glau- 

cus,  X  5. 


which  form  the  interior  of  this  rosette  are  the 
points  at  which  microscopic  pores  or  canals  lead 

into  the  interior  of  the  egg,  and 

through  which  it  is  fertilized. 
The  eggs  are  of 

every  variety  of 

shape ;     but    iii 

general  they  are 

flattened  on  the 

surface    of    rest 

and      spherical 

[Fig.  6],  hemispherical  [Figs.  7,  8], 
or  sugar-loaf-shaped  above  [Figs. 
9,  10 ;  see  also  Fig.  17] ;  in  one 
group  they  are  spindle-shaped  [Fig. 
11],  and  in  another  they  have  the 
form  of  a  sea-urchin  [Fig.  12].  Some  of  them. 


FIG.  5.— Micropyle  of 
;gg  of  Eurymus  Philo- 
lice,  X  60. 


FIG.  7.— Egg  of 

Heodes  Hypophlaeas, 

X  1C 


O 

FIG.  8.— Egg  of 

Atrytone  Zabulon, 

X  12. 


8 


THE  EGG. 


notably  in  the  lower  groups,  are  almost  smooth, 
but  under  the  microscope  some  fret- 
work of  cells  may  be  discerned  upon 
the  walls  of  all.     Others  again,  and 
they  form  a  large  proportion,  are 
buttressed    upon    the 
sides  with  upright  ribs, 
SStSri&i    which  may  be  seen  by 
the  naked  eye ;  some- 
times these  ribs  are  coarse  and  ir- 
regular, running  in  zigzag  lines  from 
base  to  summit,  and  rendering  the 
egg     scarcely     distin- 
guishable from    those    ^&i°S^f 
with  the  coarser  net- 
work of  cells ;  in  others,  however, 
FIG.  11. -Egg  of     and  these  are  generally  confined  to 

Eurymus  Philo-  J 

the  higher  types  [Fig.  13],  the  ribs 


are  excessively  compressed,  mere  films,  placed 
edgewise  to  the  body  of  the  egg,  glistening  in  the 
sunshine  like    dew-drops,    and    in- 
creasing in  size  to  the 
summit,     where    they 
often  form  a  sort   of 
crown.     In  still  others 
the  ribs   thicken  and    FIG  13_E     f 
broaden  above,  so  that  the  summit   Vanessa  Ataiama, 
looks  as  if  covered  with  little  hil- 
locks [Fig.  14]  ;  or  the  ribs  may  die  out  before 


FIG.  12.— Egg  of 

Chrysophanus 

Thoe,  X  11. 


THE  EGG.  •    9 

reaching  the  base,  and  above  may  terminate  at 
the  edge  of  a  saucer-like  depression,  which  forms 
the  cap  of  the  egg,  as  is  the  case  in  the  Baltimore 
(Euphydryas  Phaeton)  [Fig.  15] ;  but  everywhere, 
with  more  or  less  distinctness,  be- 
tween these  buttressing  ribs,  the 
surface  of  the  egg  is  broken  into 
quadrangular  cells  [see  Figs.  9,  10, 
etc.]  by  delicate  cross -ridges,  which 
often  increase  in  stoutness  toward  the  main  ribs, 
and  in  their  turn  buttress  them.  In  the  echinoid 
eggs  [see  Fig.  12]  the  surface  is  never  ribbed,  but 
'covered  with  a  heavy  net-work  of  deep  pits, 
whose  bounding  walls  are  rather  coarse  and 
rough.  In  these  eggs,  too,  the  rosette  of  micro- 
scopic cells  at  the  summit  is  situated  at  the  bot- 
tom of  a  very  deep  and  narrow  well,  where  they 
can  with  difficulty  be  seen.  Other  shells,  as  in 
the  globular  eggs  of  the  purples  (Basilar- 
chia),  have  the  same  style  of  pitting  ; 
but  the  cell-walls,  though  high,  are 
thin,  and  at  every  angle  emit  a  little 
filament,  which  gives  the  egg  a  brist- 

FiG.15.-E-gof       ,.  * 

E.iPhydryasi>hae-  ling  appearance  [Fig.  16].  In  some, 
the  ribs  and  the  cross-ridges  are  so 
numerous  and  of  so  similar  a  prominence  [Figs. 
17,  18]  as  almost  to  make  them  resemble  the  net- 
work of  pits  on  less  regular  eggs  ;  while  in 
others,  like  the  nearly  globular  eggs  of  our  em- 


10. 


THE  EGG. 


peror    butterflies    (Chlorippe)    [see    Figs     183, 
185],  where  the  longitudinal  ribs  and  the  cross- 


FIG.  16.— Egg  of  Basilar- 
chia  Archippus,  a,  X  30 ; 
ft,  natural  size,  on  under 
surface  of  leaf  (Riley). 


ridges  are  almost  equally  close,  no  such  appear- 
ance is  produced,  on  account 
of  the  proportionally  greater 
prominence  of  the  longitudi- 
nal ribs. 

Most  of  these  egg-shells  are 
opaque ;  or,  if  transparent, 
are  so  covered  with  raised 
ridges  in  the  form  of  ribs  or 
cell- walls  as  to  render  an  ex- 
amination of  the  eggs  very 
not  im- 


FIG.  17. —Eg?  of  Danais 
Plexippus,  x  30  (Riley). 


difficult,    though 

possible  to  the  determined 

naturalist.     Still,  whether 

from  this  difficulty  or  by 

mere  chance,  very  little  is 

actually    known    of    the 

changes  undergone  by  the 

yolk  and  the  surrounding  parts,  and  of  the  for- 


Fm.  18.— Egg  of  Danais  Plexip- 
pus>,  nnt.  size,  on  under  surface  of 
leaf  " 


THE  EGG.  11 

•  mation  of  the  embryonic  caterpillar ;  we  merely 
know  that  nothing  essentially  different  transpires 
from  what  occurs  in  other  insects  ;  the  yolk-mass 
first  breaks  up/into  an  infinite  number  of  cells, 
and  then  those  lying  next  the  surface  enlarge, 
and  form  what  is  to  be  the  germinal  layer,  a 
specialized  band  of  nucleolated  cells  nearly  en- 
circling the  egg  and  out  of  which  the  future  cat- 
erpillar develops.  The  first  step  in  this  latter 
process  is  the  division  of  the  band  by  cross  in- 
dentations' into  a  number  of  segments,  while  at 
the  same  time  the  anterior  portion  increases  in 
size  ;  next,  the  rudiments  of  the  various  mem- 
bers, such  as  the  mouth  parts  and  legs,  scarcely 
distinguishable  in  character  one  from  another, 
bud  out  from  the  sides  of  the  body.  Thus  the 
earliest  form  of  the  caterpillar  may  be  called  a 
segmented  ribbon,  with  lateral  buds  where  the 
movable  organs  are  to  be  ;  and  this  ribbon  is 
curled  backward  around  the  egg,  head  to  tail. 
By  degrees  the  ribbon  broadens  and  fills  out,  or 
incloses  the  yolk-mass  of  the  interior,  the  legs 
and  other  appendages  grow,  the  mass  of  the  body 
retreating  at  the  same  time  to  give  them  room, 
until,  when  the  time  of  hatching  approaches,  the 
caterpillar  has  recovered  its  position  in  the  egg, 
but  with  its  back  and  not  its  belly  next  the  wall 
of  its  prison.  Finally,  the  circumference  of  the 
egg  becomes  too  contracted  for  the  rapid  growth 


12  THE  EGG. 

of  the  body,  and  the  head  and  following  segments 
of  the  creature  are  extended  upward  toward  the 
summit  of  the  egg,  the  hinder  end  overlapping 
the  segments  which  fall  in  its  way. 

All  these  changes  may  transpire  within  four 
or  five  days,  although  they  ordinarily  take  a 
fortnight,  occasionally  a  month  ;  and  there  are 
species  of  butterflies  which  pass  the  winter  in 
the  egg  state. 


CHAPTEK    II. 

THE  CATERPILLAB. 

THE  caterpillar  is  a  worm-like  animal,  plainly 
separated  into  two  principal  parts,  a  head  and 
body  ;  and  the  latter  into  a  number  of  rings, 
which  may  be  clustered  by  certain  features  into 
two  tracts,  a  thoracic  and  an  abdominal.  The  head 
itself  is  in  reality  made  up  of  a  number  of  rings, 
consolidated  in  such  a  way  as  to  render  their  sep- 
arate determination  one  of  the  most  difficult  tasks 
of  the  morphologist,  just  as  our  own  head  is  com- 
posed of  a  number  of  primal  vertebrae.  The  hard 
parts  of  an  insect  are  upon  the  outside,  while  ours 
are  within ;  and  just  as  our  backbone  is  made  up 
of  a  series  of  vertebrae  ranged  in  a  row,  a  single 
vertebra  being,  as  it  were,  the  unit  of  structure, 
so  the  outer  coating  of  an  insect  is  broken  up  into 
a  series  of  rings,  laid  end  to  end,  each  the  unit  of 
its  structure.  The  number  of  elemental  rings 
forming  the  head  of  a  caterpillar  is  still  a  matter 
of  dispute,  and  would  be  a  subject  perhaps  too 
abstruse  in  the  present  state  of  science  to  discuss 
here.  It  may  only  be  said  that  no  one  ring  will 
be  found  to  bear  on  its  under  surface  more  than 
a  single  set  of  jointed  appendages,  and  that  the 


14 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


rodes  Eurydice,  X  2 ; 
a,  front  view  ;  &,  Bide 
view. 


latest  researches  of  Kowalevsky  seem  to  point 
very  directly  to  the  conclusion  that  the  head  is 
composed  of  five  primordial  seg- 
ments. 

But    the    head,   as  it  appears 
when  the  caterpillar  fairly  makes 
PIG.  i9.-Head  of    its  entrance  into  the  world,  is  a 

caterpillar    of    Saty-         . 

little    globular 

case,*  bearing  be- 
neath an  astonishing  number  of 
movable  organs,  and  having  the 
upper  part  divided  down  the  mid- 
dle by  a  suture,  which  forks  in 
passing  down  the  face,  leaving  a 
triangular  piece  at  the  very  front  .  Fie.2o.-AnaeaAn- 

»  dria  ;  Z»,  head  of  cat- 

[Fig.  21];  this  triangular  piece  «^  ,*%*$£ 
bears  the  upper  lip,  a  little  flap  of  S?5fh«Sof>«SJ; 
membrane  with  a  swing  forward  JfSSS/SSti^stoge; 
and  backward  by  means  of  the 
hinge  which  unites  it  to  the  triangle.  Directly 
behind  this  come  a  pair  of  stout  biting  jaws  or 


*  The  head  of  the  newly-born  caterpillar  always  lacks  those 
prominences  which  frequently  adorn  the  crown  of  the  same 
creatures  at  later  stages  [Figs.  19,  20].  In  the  goat-weed  but- 
terfly (Anaea  Andria)  these  attain  their  greatest  size  in  the  second 
stage,  and  afterward  gradually  disappear,  so  that  the  head  of  the 
full-grown  caterpillar  is  as  unbroken  as  when  newly  hatched 
(compare  Fig.  20,  b,  d,  e),  while  ordinarily  these  prominences  in- 
crease in  size  with  every  moult,  and  may  attain  extraordinary 
dimensions  (See  Fig.  19  and  Figs.  183  and  135,  i,j,  &,  I,  m). 


THE   CATERPILLAR.  15 

mandibles,  pyramidal,  horny  pieces,  the  chiselled 
or  serrated  edge  of  the  one  playing  against  that 
of  the  other  as  they  work  laterally.  The  mouth 
lies  between  them,  and  they  are  followed  by  more 
complicated  parts,  the  secondary  jaws,  or  so-called 
maxillae,  which  in  many  insects  have  a  similar 
movement,  and  play  no  doubt  a  considerable  part 
in  the  preparation  of  the  food ;  but  here  they 


FIG.  21. — Head  of  caterpillar  of  Danais  Plexippus ;  a,  front  view ;  b,  side 
view,  both  x  3 ;  c,  view  from  beneath,  x  10;  Ib,  labrum  :  md,  mandible; 
mx,  maxilla,  with  two  palpi ;  Im,  labium,  with  one  pair  of  palpi ;  s,  spinneret ; 
a,  antenna  (the  bristle  is  not  shown) ;  o,  ocelli  (Burgess). 

have  only  a  certain  telescopic  motion  of  with- 
drawal and  protrusion  ;  they  consist  of  a  pair  of 
rounded,  fleshy,  semi-globular  prominences,  and 
each  of  these  has  two  appendages  or  feelers  called 
palpi,  the  outer  and  larger  composed  of  several 
joints,  the  inner  of  only  one.  The  rest  of  the 
under  and  hinder  part  of  the  head  is  taken  up 
with  the  labium  or  under  lip  and  its  appendages  ; 
though  called  in  common  language  the  under  lip, 
it  should  not  be  compared  or  contrasted  with  the 
upper  lip,  but  with  the  maxillae  or  secondary 
jaws,  being  in  all  insects  of  a  similar  composition, 


16  THE   CATERPILLAR. 

so  as  rather  to  merit  the  name  of  tertiary  jaws. 
The  opposing  parts,  however,  never  have  any 
movement  toward  each  other,  but  all  are  consoli- 
dated into  a  single  piece.  In  caterpillars,  the 
basal  portion  resembles  that  of  one  of  the  maxil- 
lae, and  bears  on  either  side  at  the  tip  a  very  mi- 
nute jointed  appendage  similar  in  structure  to  the 
maxillary  palpi,  and  to  be  compared  with  the 
outer  of  the  two  appendages  of  the  maxillae  ;  they 
are  termed  the  labial  palpi ;  between  them  it  bears 
another  appendage,  the  equivalent  of  united  inner 
labial  palpi,  but  having  a  special  structure  ;  it  is 
a  conical  slender  horny  tube,  serving  the  purpose 
of  the  spinneret  of  the  spider  ;  for,  wherever  the 
caterpillar  walks,  at  least  during  its  early  stages, 
it  sways  its  head  constantly  from  side  to  side  in  a 
manner  almost  painful  to  behold,  spinning  a  zig- 
zag ladder  of  silk  upon  the  surface  on  which  it 
treads,  by  means  of  which  its  hold  of  the  swing- 
ing leaf  or  twig  is  made  more  secure. 

I  am  thus  particular  in  describing  the  parts  of 
the  head  in  order  to  show  how  vast  is  the  change 
they  undergo  in  the  growth  of  the  insect.  The 
pieces  I  have  described  are  called  in  general  the 
mouth-parts,  and  it  is  interesting  to  see  with  what 
astonishing  compactness  they  are  all  massed  to- 
gether in  one  little  spot.  In  the  largest  of  our 
butterfly  caterpillars,  they  would  not  together  be 
larger  than  a  pin' s  head.  The  only  other  movable 


THE    CATERPILLAR.  17 

appendages  are  the  antennae,  and  these  again  are 
very  similar  to  the  maxillae.  They  are  situated 
just  at  the  base  of  the  mandibles  and  consist  of 
four  joints,  of  which  the  first  is  only  a  fleshy 
lump,  and  the  others  very  small  cylindrical  joints, 
each  smaller  than  the  previous,  like  the  joints  of 
a  telescope,  the  last  extremely  minute,  and  the 
last  but  one  furnished  with  a  long  bristle.  The 
eyes  lie  behind  and  above  the  antennae,  and  con- 
sist of  six  little  hemispherical  warts,  five  of  them 
arranged  in  a  curve  opening  backward,  and  the 
sixth  at  some  distance  behind. 

The  body,  or  the  portion  of  the  caterpillar  lying 
back  of  the  head,  is  composed  of  thirteen  seg- 
ments ;  so  far  as  external  form,  shape,  and  size  are 
concerned,  these  segments  do  not  often  differ 
greatly  from  each  other  ;  they  are  generally  cyl- 
indrical rings  a  little  shorter  than  broad  ;  but  in 
the  appendages  they  bear  are  found  differences 
of  great  importance.  Only  the  three  segments 
immediately  following  the  head  bear  horny  and 
distinctly  jointed  legs  ;  but  since  the  caterpillar 
would  find  it  difficult  to  move  freely  in  situations 
where  it  must  seek  its  food  without  some  prop 
to  the  hinder  part  of  its  body,  it  possesses  besides 
five  pairs  of  false  legs,  or  prolegs  as  they  are  called, 
which  for  its  purposes  are  even  an  improvement 
upon  the  genuine  article  [Fig.  22].  The  true  legs 
terminate  in  a  horny  claw  and  are  encased  in 


18 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


an    armor-like  shell   which  hardly  allows  any- 
thing more  than  a  lateral  motion  [Fig.  23]  ;  while 


FIG.  23.— Metatho- 
racic  leg  of  cater- 
pillar of  Papilio 
Antiopa,  X  3J. 


Fio.  22.— Caterpillar  of  Danais  Plexippus,  nat.  size  (Riley). 

the  proleg  is  a  fleshy  stub  which  may  be  with- 
drawn or  extended  at   pleasure,   and  is  armed 
at  tip  with  several  curving  series  of 
NTX,  delicate  hooks  [Fig.  24]  ;  these  also 

\L  are  extensile  and  will  grasp  a  sin- 

gle thread,  or  plunge  themselves  so 
firmly  into  a  silken  carpet  that  it 
would  require  considerable  force  on 
our  part  to  extricate  them  ;  while  a  simple  mus- 
cular movement  of  the  caterpillar  serves  to  with- 
draw them  from  the  web,  leav- 
ing not  a  thread  misplaced. 
The  presence  or  absence  of  the 
horny  jointed  legs  separates 
the  segments  of  which  the  body 
is  composed  into  two  tracts,  the 
thoracic  and  abdominal ;  this 
separation,  however,  would  not  apparently  have 
much  weight  were  it  not  for  the  future  development 


FIG.  24.— Caterpillar  of 
Papilio  Antiopa  ;  «.  proleg, 
X  4t ;  b.  circlet  of  hooks  at 
end  of  proleg,  X  5 ;  c,  one 
of  the  hooks,  X  12. 


THE    CATERPILLAR.  19 

of  the  creature,  when  the  thoracic  segments  become 
the  thorax  and  the  abdominal  segments  the  abdo- 
men— a  distinction  which  is  merely  foreshadowed 
now  in  the  difference  between  the  anterior  and 
posterior  feet.  We  have,  therefore,  chosen  not  to 
treat  of  these  two  tracts  separately,  but  to  discuss 
the  diiferent  characteristics  of  the  body  as  a 
whole,  pointing  out,  however,  some  further  dis- 
tinctions between  those  which  occur  in  the  tho- 
racic and  those  in  the  abdominal  tracts.  To  return 
to  the  consideration  of  the  legs,  it  should  be 
noticed  that  while  every  one  of  the  thoracic  seg- 
ments bears  a  true  leg,  it  is  not  every  one  of  the 
abdominal  segments  which  bears  a  proleg.  In- 
deed in  the  Lepidoptera  generally  there  is  consid- 
erable variation  in  this  respect,  but  among  the  but- 
terflies these  appendages  are  always  borne  by  the 
third  to  the  sixth  abdominal  segments,  and  by  the 
last  segment,  leaving  thus  a  similar  space  without 
support  between  the  true  and  false  legs,  and  be- 
tween the  terminal  and  preceding  false  legs.  In 
a  single  group  of  butterflies  (Plebeii),  that  to 
which  our  tiny  blues  (Adolescentes)  belong,  the 
prolegs  are  excessively  small,  and  can  indeed  only 
be  readily  detected  when  the  skin  of  the  caterpil- 
lar is  prepared  by  inflation.  These  caterpillars 
seem  to  glide  rather  than  to  creep  [Fig.  25]  ;  and 
indeed  their  movements  are  undoubtedly  aided 
by  muscular  contractions  and  expansions  of  the 


THE    CATERPILLAR. 


entire  body,   which  fairly  rests  upon  the  sur- 
face of  motion. 

Another  peculiarity  of  the  body  is  a  series  of 
breathing-pores  upon   the  sides,  through  which 

the  air  enters  certain 
tubes  ramifying  within 
for  the  aeration  of  the 
blood  ;  there  is  but  one 
of  these  spiracles  or 
stigmata  upon  either 
side  of  any  segment, 
and  they  are  absent 
from  the  second  and 
third  thoracic  and  from 
the  last  two  abdominal 
segments  ;  it  would  ap- 
pear therefore  that  the  narrowing  hinder  por- 
tion of  the  body  can  be  supplied  with  air  from 
the  segments  in  advance  ;  but  the  absence  of 
spiracles  from  what  is  ordinarily  the  stoutest 
part  of  the  body,  the  centre,  too,  of  the  great- 
est variety  and  largest  development  of  internal 
organs,  requires  another  explanation ;  and  it  is 
to  be  found  only  in  the  fact  that  the  spiracles 
are  absent  from  these  same  segments  in  the  per- 
fect insect,  where  they  would  interfere  with  the 
special  purpose  of  this  part  of  the  body,  viz.,  the 
support  of  the  wings  and  of  the  apparatus 
for  their  vigorous  movement.  Here  we  have  a 


: 


FIG.  25.— Caterpillar  of  Heodes 
Hypophlaeas,  nat.  size. 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


significant  foreshadowing  of  the  approacJting 
winged  state  of  the  insect. 
One  more  feature  common  to  several  segments  of 


FIG.  26.— PontiaProtodice  ;  a,  caterpillar  ;  6,  chrysalis  ;  nat.  size  (Biley). 

the  body  of  a  caterpillar  is  its  abundant  armature. 
No  caterpillars  of  butterflies  are  absolutely  naked; 
those  which  appear  so  are  still  clothed  with  delicate 
pile  [Fig.  26],  or  short  distant  bristles,  which  are 
more  or  less  regularly  disposed  ;  others  are  cov- 
ered with  simple  or  compound  spines  [Fig.  27],  or 
with  microscopically 
barbed  hairs  of  great 
length,  or  with  fleshy 
filaments  [Fig.  28 ; 
see  also  Fig.  22],  or 

Clubbed      Or     knobby        FIG.  27.-Caterpil!arofPapilioAntiopa, 

tubercles  [Fig.  29;  see 

also  Figs.  40,  a,  &,  c],  whose  definite  arrangement  is 
still  more  apparent ;  ordinarily  they  are  disposed 
in  longitudinal  rows,  with  one  or  more  spines  on 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


each  segment,  and  all  the  spines  of  one  row  will 
be  found  on  corresponding 
points  of  the  different  seg- 
ments, either  at  the  front, 
or  back,  or  centre,  as  the  case 
may  be.  The  first  thoracic 
segment,  however,  takes  lit- 
tle part  in  these  regular  se- 
ries ;  its  appendages  are  usu- 
ally reduced  to  a  transverse 
series  next  the  front  edge, 
often  forming  a  sort  of  crown 
to  the  head ;  still  they  may 
severally  be  proved  to  form 
part  of  the  longitudinal  series 
of  the  rest  of  the  body,  or 
rather  of  the  thoracic  seg- 
ments ;  for  with  scarcely  an 
exception  among  the  cater- 
pillars of  butter- 
flies, those  series 
which  extend 
along  the  ab- 
dominal seg- 
ments either 
stop  altogether 
at  the  thoracic 
segments,  or 
slightly  change  their  direction  at  this  point ;  so 


FIG.  28.— Caterpillar  of  Laer- 
tias  Philenor,  nat.  size  ^Riley). 


FIG.  29.— Caterpillar  of  Basilarchia  Archippus, 
nat.  size  (Riley). 


THE    CATERPILLAR.  23 

that  often  we  may  readily  distinguish  the  thoracic 
from  the  abdominal  segments  without  seeing  the 
legs.  Thus  even  in  the  mere  disposition  of  the 
spines  on  a  caterpillar^  s  back,  the  future  sepa- 
ration of  tliorax  and  abdomen  is  foreshadowed., 

It  might  be  supposed  that  the  slightly  altered 
arrangement  of  the  spines  in  passing  from  the 
abdominal  to  the  thoracic  tract  was  due  to  the 
larger  amount  of  space  on  the  latter  owing  to  the 
absence  of  breathing  pores  ;  but  it  is  wholly  inde- 
pendent of  this,  for  when  the  spines  are  well  de- 
veloped on  the  first  thoracic  segment,  which  bears 
an  unusually  large  spiracle,  they  align  with  those 
of  the  other  thoracic  segments  and  not  with  those 
of  the  abdomen. 

In  many  caterpillars  there  is  some  difference  in 
the  relative  size  of  the  various  segments  ;  gener- 
ally speaking,  the  segment  behind  the  head  is 
rather  smaller  than  the  others  ;  and  in  one  group, 
the  skippers  (Urbicolae) 


[Fig.    30],    as    also  in  the        XJ3 

\s  — — •xruw  u1 


goat- weed  butterfly  [see  Fig.    Flo.  30.-CaterpUlar  of  Attytone 

97],  it  is  reduced  to   such 

a  narrow  neck  as  to  give  the  creature  a  strangled 
appearance.  In  another  group,  on  the  contrary 
— that  to  which  some  of  our  smallest  butterflies 
belong,  the  coppers  (Yillicantes),  blues,  and  hair- 
streaks  (Ephori) — this  segment  is  largely  devel- 
oped, while  at  the  same  time  the  head  is  smaller 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


in  proportion  and  absolutely  retractile  within  this 
segment,  so  that  when  the  creature  is  not  feeding 
its  head  is  invisible  [see  Fig.  25].  In  another 
group,  the  swallow-tails,  an  approach  to  this  state 
is  seen  in  the  concealment  of  the 
hinder  half  of  the  head  by  a  fold 
in  the  cuticle  of  the  segment  behind 
[Fig.  31].  Any  striking  differences 
of  size  seen  in  the  middle  segments 
of  the  body  are  generally  due  not 
so  much  to  the  enlargement  or  con- 
traction of  single  segments  as  to 
the  presence,  at  such  points,  of 
fleshy  tubercles  [see  Fig.  29]  ;  but  the  body  al- 
ways tapers  somewhat  posteriorly,  and  the  last 
two  segments  (especially  in  the  blues  and  their 
allies)  are  generally  so  closely  coalesced  as  readily 
to  be  mistaken  for  a  single  one. 


FIG.  31.  —  Front 
portion  of  caterpil- 
lar of  Princeps  Po- 
lyxenes,  to  enow 
the  partial  covering 
of  the  head  by  the 
first  thoracic  seg- 
ment, X  1|. 


FIG.  32. — Caterpillar  of  Princeps  Polyxenes  with  extended  osmateria, 
nat.  size  (the  head  is  drawn  too  large). 

It  only  remains  to  speak  of  a  certain  isolated 
extensile  organ  borne  by  the  first  segment  behind 
the  head.  I  refer  to  the  prong,  termed,  in  the  swal- 
low-tails (Equites),  the  osmateria  or  scent-organ 
[Fig.  32]  ;  it  is  here  developed  to  an  extraordinary 


THE    CATERPILLAR.  25 

degree,  having,  when  extended,  a  Y-shaped  form, 
but  when  not  required  for  defence  entirely  retract- 
ed within  the  body,  leaving  only  a  transverse  slit 
to  indicate  its  point  of  emission  [see  Fig.  28].  In  all 
other  butterflies  the  organ  is  found  upon  the  under 
surface  of  the  body  between  the  lower  lip  and  the 
front  legs,  and  its  identity  with  the  osmateria  has 
therefore  escaped  attention.  In  this  place  it  is 
never  developed  as  a  Y-shaped  organ,  but  is  pro- 
truded as  a  conical  or  hemispher- 
ical bladder  of  greater  or  less  size 
[Fig.  33],  or,  in  the  blues  and  their 
allies,  as  a  lenticular  disk.  It  is 
found  also  in  many  other  Lepidop- 

FIG.  33.— a,  front  por- 

tera ;   whether   developing  exter-   tinn  of  the  caterpillar 

of  Danais  Plexippus, 

nally  upon  the  upper  or  under 
surface  of  the  body,  it  is  always, 
excepting  in  the  anomalous  group 

,.-..,          TT  -,..,  the  transverse  slit  at 

to  which  the  blues  and  similar  up,  x  2. 
butterflies  belong,  emitted  from  a  transverse  slit 
across  the  segment.  Its  use,  when  developed  on 
the  upper  surface,  is  unquestionably  as  a  scent- 
organ,  a  weapon  of  defence  against  its  foes,  for 
the  stench  it  emits  in  some  species  is  simply  in- 
sufferable ;  when  developed  beneath,  the  purpose 
of  this  organ  is  problematical ;  some  have  sup- 
posed that  it  secreted  a  fluid  for  the  lubrication 
of  food  just  before  eating,  but  this  seems  exceed- 
ingly doubtful. 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


Cyaniris  pseudargio- 
lus  ;  a,  spiracles  ;  6, 
position  of  extensile 
organs  shown  in  Fig. 
35  ;  c,  opening  of  ves- 
icle, which  is  capable 

of  emitting  a  fluid  ; 
X  about  6  (Edwards). 


Other  similar  extensile  organs  are  occasionally 
found  in  different  parts  of  the 
body  in  Lepidoptera  ;  but  among 
butterflies  they  have  been  noticed 
only  in  some  of  the  caterpillars  of 
the  blues,  which,  when  disturbed, 
extrude  a  very  minute  vesicle 
from  a  transverse  slit  on  the  top 
of  the  sev- 
enth abdcm- 
segment. 
was  first 

noticed  by  Guenee*  nearly 
fifteen  years  ago,  but  his  ob- 
servations attracted  little  at- 
tention until  the  fact  was  re- 
discovered in  this  country 
by  Mr.  Ed  wards,  f  who  also 
noticed  and  explained  the 
use  of  still  other  extensile 
organs  on  the  next  segment  of 
the  body  in  the  same  cater- 
pillars [Figs.  34,  35],  men- 
tioned by  Guenee,  and  now 
known  to  occur  in  many  blues. 


Fm.  35.— Extensile  organs 


spines  expanded  ;  6,  with  the 
(•pines  half  withdrawn;   both 

Jgji 


The  central  vesi- 


*  Ann.  Soc.  Entom.,  France,  (4),  vii.,  665-68(1867). 

t  Can.  Entom.,  x.,  pp.  6,136  (1878).  See  also  Mr.  McCook's  ob- 
servations, made  independently  the  same  year,  in  the  Trans. 
Atner.  Ent.  Soc.,  vi.,  pp.  289-91. 


THE    CA  TERPILLAR.  .        27 

cle  of  the  seventh  segment  exudes  a  sweetened 
fluid,  very  grateful  to  ants,  and  the  spiny -crowned 
tentacles  on  the  next  segment  serve,  when  erected, 
as  indications  to  the  ants  that  the  feast  is  ready. 
The  ants  in  their  turn  act  as  guards  to  keep  off  the 
attack  of  Ichneumon  enemies  from  their  willing 
hosts,  and  thus  each  serves  the  other  a  good  turn. 

These  are  all  the  external  parts  of  a  caterpillar 
which  it  is  now  necessary  to  consider.  But  there 
is  one  peculiarity  of  its  growth,  which,  though 
very  curious,  has  been  but  little  noticed,  and 
only  recently  has  been  shown  to  be  of  probably 
universal  application.  When  any  one  character- 
istic is  found  throughout  an  entire  group  we  nat- 
urally inquire  what  its  meaning  may  be  ;  espe- 
cially in  these  days  when  evolution  is  required  to 
explain  everything  or  nothing.  In  this  place,  I 
shall  only  present  the  facts,  and  leave  a  possible 
explanation  for  a  later  chapter. 

Every  caterpillar  in  its  growth  from  the  egg  to 
maturity  changes  the  character  of  its  coating.  I 
do  not  refer  to  that  periodic  sloughing  of  the  in- 
tegument common  to  the  early  stages  of  all  in- 
sects, the  reason  for  which  is  quite  apparent, 
since  otherwise  their  inelastic  coats  would  be  too 
strait  for  their  rapidly  growing  bodies.  But  I 
call  attention  rather  to  the  fact  that  with  the  first 
sloughing  of  the  integument  an  entirely  different 
set  of  appendages  is  assumed.  The  fresh  integu- 


28  THE   CATERPILLAR. 

ment  of  subsequent  moultings  may  be  likened  to 
a  new  spring  suit,  very  like  the  old  one,  but 
bright  and  clean  ;  while  the  difference  of  arma- 
ture accompanying  the  first  moult  is  more  like 
the  difference  between  the  dress  of  a  child  and  a 
man.  The  dress  of  our  manhood  differs  as  much 
from  that  of  our  infancy  as  it  does  from  the  dress 
of  a  savage  ;  in  like  manner  the  outfit  of  a  full- 
grown  caterpillar  differs  as  much  from  its  outfit 
at  birth  as  it  does  from  that  of  a  caterpillar  be- 
longing to  a  different  tribe. 

To  present  a  few  examples  :  The  mature  cater- 
pillars of  our  brown  meadow  butterflies  or  satyrs 
(Oreades)  have  a  rough  skin,  the  result  of  a  mul- 
titude of  minute  tubercles  ;  each  of  these  tuber- 
cles bears  a  simple  hair,  scarcely  visible  to  the 
naked  eye.  In  the  young  caterpillar  of  four  dif- 
ferent genera  of  these  butterflies  which  I  have 
studied,  the  skin  is  smooth,  and  instead  of  being 
supplied  with  an  almost  innumerable  number  of 
microscopic  hairs,  is  furnished,  in  some  instances, 
with  an  exceedingly  scanty  number 
of  little  club-shaped  bristles,  pro- 
portionally  many  times  longer  than 
FIG.  36.-  Bristle  the  hairs  of  the  adult,  and  arranged 


of  sEm-y-   in  definite  longitudinal  series  [Fig. 

36]  ;  in  others  it  is  furnished  with 

flattened  ribbon-like  hairs,  as  long  as  the  body, 

serrated  on  one  edge  and  bent  in  the  middle 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


Fro.  37.— Ribbon-like 
bristle  of  young  cater- 
pillar of  Cercyonis 
Alope,  X  125. 


[Fig.  37] ;  on  the  abdominal  segments  these  hairs 

point  backward,   and  on  the  thoracic  forward; 

that  is,  the  caterpillar  parts  its 

hair  in  the  middle  [Fig.  38].    In 

the  Monarch  or  Milk- weed  but- 

terfly    (Danais    Plexippus)    the 

full-grown  caterpillar   (see  Fig. 

22)  is  naked,  but  adorned  with  a 

pair  of  long,  thread-like,  fleshy, 

flexible  tentacles  at  either  extremity  of  the  body  ; 

in  the  young  caterpillar  these  tentacles  or  fila- 
ments are  ab- 
sent, but  their 
future  position 
is  marked  by  lit- 
tle,  conical, 
black  points, 

while  the  body  is  covered  with  minute  black 

bristles,  arising  from  still  more  minute  warts,  and 

arranged  six  on  the  back  of  each 

segment,    placed  four  in  a  row  in 

front  and  one  on  each  side  behind, 

and  three  on  either  side  of  the  body, 

one  in  the  middle  of  the  segment 

and  two  below  [Fig.   39].     In  our 

purples  the  segments  of  the  young 

caterpillar  are  equal  in  size  and  have 

regular  series  of  stellate  warts  ;  in  the  mature 

caterpillar  the  body  is  grotesquely  hunched,  while 


FIG.  38.— Young  caterpillar  of  Cercyonis  Alope, 

X  20. 


FIG.  39. —  Side 
view  (a)  and  top 
view  (b)  of  young 
larva  of  Danais 
Plexippus  to  show 
the  arrangement 
of  the  hairs,  X  20 
(Riley). 


30 


THE   CATERPILLAR. 


FIG.  40.— Clubbed  spine  of  caterpil- 
lar of  Basilarchia  Astyanax  (a),  X  3, 
and  of  B.  Archippus  (6,  c),  X  about  3. 


the  warts  have  changed  to  very  variable  tuber- 
cles, one  set,  mounted  on  the  highest  hunch,  pre- 
senting a  formidable  appearance  as  a  pair  of 

knotted  clubs  as  long  as 
the  breadth  of  the  body 
[Fig.  40].  In  the  angle- 
wings  (Praefecti),  which 
furnish  the  ordinary 
spiny  caterpillars,  these 
spines  are  compound  in 
the  adult  (that  is,  they 
bear  subsidiary  spin- 
ules),  and  are  arranged 
in  certain  definite  rows.  In  their  earliest  life, 
these  caterpillars  are  furnished  with  long  taper- 
ing hairs  [Fig.  41]  also  arranged  in  definite  series, 
but  not  occupying  the  same  position  as  the  spines 
of  the  mature  caterpillar.  Now  in  each  genus  of 
spiny  caterpillars  the  spines  occupy  a  certain 
fixed  place,  and  by 
means  of  this  feature, 
among  others,  we  define 
the  genus.  Here  then 
the  young  and  old  cat- 
erpillars plainly  differ 
from  each  other  in  ge- 
neric  features.  To  a  casual  view  the  caterpillars 
of  our  blue  butterflies,  our  coppers  and  hair- 
streaks,  appear  quite  naked  ;  they  are,  however, 


a       b       c  d  e 

FIG.    41.— Spines   of    caterpillar  of 
Vanessa  cardni  at  different  periods- 
fifth  stages;   differently 


THE   CATERPILLAR.  31 

profusely  covered  with  microscopic  hairs  ;  but  the 
newly  hatched  cater- 
pillars are    provided 
with    long   hairs 
sweeping     backward 
behind  their  bodies, 
most  of  them  arrang- 
ed in  longitudinal  se- 
ries     [Fig.     42]  ;      the        FIG.  42.— Young  caterpillar  of  Heodee 
-i      .        , -,  ,  Hypophlaeas,  x  28. 

hairs  themselves,  too, 

instead  of  being  simple,   as  in  the 
adult,  are  covered  with  microscopic 
spicules.     In  our  white  and  yellow 
FIG.  43.- spine    butterflies    (Fugacia    and  Yoracia), 

of  young  caterpil- 

phiiodiceElx}3oo d  pests  of  the  garden  and  the  glory 
of  the  fields,  the  differences  between 
youth  and  old  age  are  much  the  same 
as  in  the  meadow  butterflies  first 
mentioned  [Figs.  43,  44].  In  a  gen- 
eral way,  the  same  may  be  said  of 
the  skippers,  but  the  appendages  of 

.,  ,  .,,  FIG.  44.— Spine 

the  new-born  caterpillar  are  always    or  young  carerpii- 

17         lar  of  Pieris  ole- 

shaped    like   little    clubbed    mush^    racea,  xso. 

rooms  [Fig.  45],  and  under  the  mi- 
croscope bear  an  odd  resemblance  to 

ciilbbed'^?etramy-    a  row  of  cabbages  in  a  vegetable 

pet-shaped    spine  -,  rrn  .,,  „ 

of  young  caterpil-    garden.      The    caterpillars    of    our 

lar  of  Ocytes  Me- 

tea,  x  i5o.  swallow-tails,  at  least  of  those  com- 

mon in  New  England,  are  always  nearly  naked 


THE    CATERPILLAR. 


a        b          c 
FIG.  46.  — Spines  of  cat- 


T  i  cstajoeal-th  '  staged 

ferentl'y  magnified/      ' 


when  full  grown  ;  we  may  find  a  few  scattered 
hairs  by  searching  with  a  lens,  and  here  and  there 
a  minute  tubercle,  or  a  smooth  and  shining  wart  ; 
in  some  species  the  front  part  of 
the  body  is  swollen  and  furnish- 
ed with  striking  eye-spots  ;  at 
birth,  however,  the  body  is  al- 

* 

wa^s  Perfectly  cylindrical  and 
supplied  with  several  prominent 

^^     Qf     bristle.bearing    tllber- 

cles,  one  tubercle  to  a  segment  in  each  row,  and 
one  row  in  the  middle  of  the  sides  more  conspic- 
uous than  the  others. 

Instances  have  been  given  in  every  one  of  the 
larger  groups  of  butterflies  to  show  the  universal- 
ity of  this  feature  in  the  development  of  the  cater- 
pillar ;  many  of  the  changes  are  gradual  in  their 
appearance,  as  shown  by  the  accompanying  fig- 
ures [Fig.  46]  of  the  spines  of  the  caterpillar  of 
Harris'  s  butterfly  (Cinclidia  Harrisii) 
[Fig.  47]  at  different  stages,  where,  it 
will,  be  seen,  they  grow  more  compli- 
cated with  advancing  life  ;  or  they 
may  be  seen  better  still  in  those  of 
the  caterpillar  of  the  Painted  Lady 
(Vanessa  cardui),  as  shown  in  Fig. 
41.  where  the  spines  of  each  stage  are  shown  ;  but 
the  more  important  changes  between  the  different 
stages  of  a  caterpillar's  life  occur  at  the  first 
moulting  ;  that  is,  those  features  of  the  young 


FIG.  47.— Chrys- 
alis of  Cinclidia 
Harrisii,  nat.  size. 


THE   CATERPILLAR.  33 

caterpillar  not  possessed  by  the  adult  are  those 
which  it  has  brought  with  it  from  the  egg,  and 
which  are  lost  when  its  skin  is  first  cast.  We 
should,  therefore,  naturally  suppose  these  peculi- 
arities to  have  some  reference  to  its  condition  in 
the  egg  ;  but  this  view  cannot  be  maintained  for  a 
moment,  for  certainly  the  most  appropriate  condi- 
tion for  a  caterpillar  in  the  egg  would  be  entire  ab- 
sence of  clothing  or  a  uniform  covering  of  silky 
hairs,  conditions  which  are  exactly  the  ones  which 
do  not  occur.  On  the  contrary,  in  every  instance 
we  can  find,  caterpillars  which  at  maturity  are 
naked  or  nearly  so,  or  clothed  uniformly  with 
hair,  when  newly  hatched  bristle  with  tubercles  or 
are  supplied  with  cumbrous  serrated  or  spiculif- 
erous  hairs.  Some  other  explanation  must  there- 
fore be  sought,  but  we  are  not  yet  prepared  to 
discuss  it. 

A  caterpillar,  then,  is  a  cylindrical  jointed  crea- 
ture, having  several  of  the  front  segments  consol- 
idated to  form  a  horny  head,  with  numerous 
mouth-parts,  eyes,  and  antennae  all  crowded  to- 
gether at  the  bottom  ;  three  other  segments  suc- 
ceeding it  bearing  horny  legs  ;  and  most  of  the 
remainder  supported  by  fleshy  legs  furnished 
with  microscopic  hooks  ;  all  the  body  segments 
are  furnished  with  special  appendages,  which, 
during  some  stage  of  its  development,  are 
arranged  in  definite  series. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  CHRYSALIS. 

THE  change  undergone  by  a  butterfly  in  passing 
from  the  caterpillar  to  the  chrysalis  state  has  al- 
ways excited  great  interest ;  yet,  notwithstanding 
all  that  has  been  written  on  the  subject,  mostly 
modelled  upon  the  detailed  but  not  wholly  accu- 
rate account  given  more  than  a  century  ago  by 
Reaumur,  the  method  by  which  the  chrysalis  in- 
closed within  the  larval  skin  becomes  attached  to 
the  silken  button  into  which  the  hindmost  feet 
of  the  caterpillar  had  previously  been  plunged, 
has  never  been  rightly  explained  until  within  a 
very  few  years,  when  the  observations  of  Osborne 
in  England,  and  of  Edwards,  and  especially  of 
Riley,  in  our  own  country,  have  solved  the  prob- 
lem. The  process  is  the  most  extraordinary  in 
the  higher  butterflies,  which  suspend  themselves 
in  pupation  by  the  hinder  end  only,  without  first 
spinning  a  loop,  like  other  butterfly  larvae,  for 
the  support  of  the  anterior,  heavier  part  of  the 
body.  A  caterpillar  of  this  kind  preparing  for 
pupation  spins  a  loose  mass  of  silk  in  some  suit- 
able place,  and,  firmly  attaching  itself  to  it  by  the 
hooks  of  the  anal  prolegs,  casts  itself  loose  from 


THE   CHRYSALIS. 


35 


all  other  support,  and  hangs  by  the  tail  [Pig.  48]. 
It  next  curves  the  front  part  of  its  body  upward  on 
the  ventral  side,  and  after  a  time,  when  the  front 
part  of  the  body  has  become  greatly  swollen  by 
the  descent  of  the  body  fluids,  a  rent  is  produced 


PIG.  43.— Danais  Plexippns,  changing  from  caterpillar  to  chrysalis  ;  a,  cater- 
pillar just  before  the  rending  of  the  !<kin ;  6,  chrysalis  just  before  the  cremaster 
is  withdrawn;  c,  chrysalis  just  after  withdrawal  of  the  cremaster  (the  last  is  a 
little  inaccurate)— compare  the  form  of  the  chrysalis  with  that  it  finally  as- 
sumes, Fig.  61  (Riley). 

in  the  back  of  the  caterpillar,  and  the  chrysalis 
gradually  protrudes  ;  not  as  it  will  afterward 
appear,  but  a  limp,  soft,  and  rather  shapeless 
mass.  It  now  hangs  at  full  length,  and  the  thin 
integument  of  the  caterpillar,  by  the  mere 
shrinkage  which  necessarily  follows  its  drying, 
creeps  back  toward  the  button  of  silk  to  which 
it  is  attached  ;  ligamentary  elastic  membranes, 
which  protrude  from  the  anal  and  tracheal  open- 
ings at  the  extremity  of  the  body,  keep  the  chrys- 
alis from  falling  out  of  the  nearly  emptied  larval 
skin  ;  but  it  is  not  destined  to  remain  hanging  by 


36  THE   CHRYSALIS. 

these  uncertain  and  delicate  supports  ;  when  all 
is  ready,  the  very  extremity  of  the  chrysalis,  a 
long  and  horny  piece,  armed  at  tip  by  a  multi- 
tude of  recurved  spines,  is  carefully  withdrawn, 
and  the  now  partially  hardened  chrysalis,  sup- 
ported by  these  ligaments,  and  in  part,  probably, 
by  the  larval  skin  itself,  gripped  between  the 
edges  of  some  of  the  hinder  segments  of  the  body, 
hangs  entirely  without  the  larval  skin  which 
formerly  inclosed  it ;  by  slight  twisting  of  the 
body,  aided  by  the  elastic  nature  of  the  ligaments, 
the  cremaster,  or  terminal  piece  of  the  chrysalis, 
finds  its  way  to  the  button  of  silk,  into  which  the 
hooks  at  its  tip  are  soon  entangled  ;  by  wri things 
and  whirlings  of  the  body,  a  greater  and  greater 
number  become  more  and  more  deeply  embedded, 
while  at  the  same  time  the  rapid  drying  of  the 
now  useless  ligaments  causes  their  rupture  from 
the  larval  skin,  which,  shrivelled  and  loosened, 
drops  to  the  ground,  leaving  the  chrysalis  in  firm 
possession  of  the  button  of  silk. 

What  a  different  object  now  greets  our  eyes ! 
Instead  of  the  worm  with  soft  and  fleshy  body, 
greedy  of  food,  moving  where  it  will,  we  find  a 
toughened  mummy,  incapable  of  more  motion 
than  a  feeble  wriggle,  and  otherwise  apparently 
lifeless  ;  what  few  prominences  it  can  boast  are 
seldom  greatly  elevated  above  the  surface,  and  in 
none  of  our  native  species  ever  assume  the  form 


THE   CHRYSALIS.  37 

of  spines,  so  common  in  the  caterpillars,  or  of 
hairs,  excepting  such  as  are  microscopic  ;  there 
are  no  movable  appendages  whatever. 

We  mentioned  certain  features  in  the  body  of 
caterpillars  as  dividing  that  portion  into  two 
tracts,  foreshadowing  the  separation  of  thorax 
and  abdomen  in  the  perfect  insect ;  but  here,  in 
the  intermediate  stage,  even  the  wide  distinction 
between  head  and  body  is  lost,  and  the  whole 
creature  appears  in  one  compacted  form,  the  im- 
pressed lines  marking  the  boundary  between  head 
and  thorax  or  thorax  and  abdomen  being  no  more 
distinct  than  those  separating  any  other  two  seg- 
ments. In  the  general  contour  of  the  surface,  how- 
ever, the  thorax  is  distinctly  separated  from  the 
abdomen  ;  while  the  head  is  seldom  separated  in  a 
similar  way  from  the  thorax  [Fig. 
49] ;  thus  our  new  acquaintance  is 
represented  by  tvvo  oval  masses 
placed  end  to  end  and  blended,  the 
front  portion  representing  the  head- 
trunk  or  cephalothorax  and  the  hind 
portion  the  abdomen.  The  append- 
ages of  the  chrysalis  are  all  encased  FlG  49._Chrys- 
in  separate  sheaths,  which,  when  it  «opa,f  Pnat.10^ze 

n  *ii  (Harris). 

first  emerges    from    the  caterpillar 
skin,  can  readily  be  separated  from  one  another, 
but  afterward  become  consolidated  with  the  rest 
of  the  integument,  and  are  neatly  folded  over  the 


38 


THE    CHRYSALIS. 


front  of  the  body  [Fig.  50].     These  appendages 
belong  to  the  butterfly  and  differ  widely  from  any 
feature  in  the  caterpillar  ;  the  wings,  therefore, 
naturally  occupy  the  larger  space, 
their  tips  meeting  or  nearly  meet- 
ing in  the  middle  line  of  the  belly  ; 
next  their  upper  edge  lie  the  anten- 
nae,  which  are  followed  by  some  of 
the  legs,  while  down  the  middle, 
between  these,  lie  the  two  parts  of 
the  maxillae  or  tongue.     As,  how- 
ever, there  are  not  sheaths  enough 
in  sight    to    accommodate  all  the 
legs,  it  becomes  a  question  of  some 
FIG.  so  -ventral   interest  to  know  where  they  all  are, 

view  of  front  por-  . 

tion  of  chrysalis  of   and  which  pairs  are  exposed.     This 

Euphoeades     Troi- 

o?°he  ip°-   ^s  no^  eas7  to  decide  from  an  exam- 
thorax  ;   inatiou  of  the  surface  of  the  chrysa- 
i*  flS?  patr   lis  alone,  but  if  a  forming  chrysalis 

of  legs  ;   2,  second 


, 

pair  of  legs;  a,  an- 

teanal  sheath. 


be  examined  while  the  organs  are 
movable,  or  the  creature  be  dissect- 
ed, it  is  easy  to  see,  first,  that  all  the  legs  are  bent 
at  the  femoro-tibial  articulation,  so  that  only  the 
tibiae  and  tarsi  of  any  of  the  legs  are  exposed  ; 
then  that  the  hind  tibiae  and  tarsi  are  concealed 
beneath  the  wings,  just  as  they  are  in  a  large 
number  of  pupae  of  beetles  or  other  insects,  where 
they  can  easily  be  seen  because  they  are  not  con- 
solidated with  the  body  ;  the  parts,  therefore, 


THE    CHRYSALIS. 


exposed  to  view  in  the  hardened  chrysalis  are  the 
tibiae  and  tarsi  of  the  front  and  middle  legs.  In 
front  of  and  lying  between  the  anterior  legs  is 
another  pair  of  sheaths  whose  inner  edges  unite 
along  the  middle  of  the  body  and  which  at  base 
are  broader  than  the  legs,  but  which  taper  to 
slender  parallel  threads  ;  these  generally  extend 
to  the  wing- tips,  pushing  their  way  between  legs 
and  wings,  which  thus  abut  against  them  ;  these 
are  plainly  the  sheaths  in  which  lies  the  slender 
elongated  tongue  of  the  butterfly, 
but  the  extent  of  the  basal  por- 
tion is  beyond  all  need,  and  some 
writers  have  asserted  that  they 
formed  the  covering  for  the  front 
legs  as  well  as  the  tongue,  and 
that  the  sheaths  which  really  en- 
case the  front  and  middle  legs 
covered  the  middle  and  hind  legs 
respectively.  If  the  naturalists 
who  first  made  this  discovery  had 
but  used  the  scalpel  for  five  min- 
utes, their  mistake  would  never 
have  occurred  [Fig.  51].  In  real- 
ity this  expanded  base  of  the 
sheath  covering  the  tongue  af- 
fords protection  also  to  the  palpi  which  lie  beneath 
and  beside  the  tongue  ;  yet  even  in  those  groups 
where  the  palpi  are  small  and  the  front  legs  long, 


FIG.  51.—  The  same 
as  Fig.  50,  with  the 
covering  of  the  legs 
and  part  of  the  wing 
of  one  side  removed, 
to  show  how  the  hind 
tibia  and  tarsus  are 
concealed  beneath  the 
wings;  x  2.  The  third 

ir  of  less  is  seen  be- 


pan 
low 


the  antennae. 


40  THE   CHRYSALIS. 

the  proportionate  extent  of  this  part  is  still  the 
same  ;  showing  that  the  sheath  is  expanded  at 
this  point  simply  to  fill  up  the  angular  void  left 
on  obliquely  uniting  legs  from  opposite  sides  of 
the  body,  and  that  the  surface  we  see  is  a  com- 
mon lid  under  which  are  thrust  the  tongue  and 
the  palpi.  There  is  another  curious  thing  about 
this  part ;  very  f  reqiiently  the  base  of  the  tongue 
is  not  covered  by  this  lid  at  all, 
but  by  a  separate  piece  of  its  own 
[Fig.  52],  which,  unlike  the  lid  be- 
yond, is  not  divided  down  the  mid- 
dle to  represent  the  two  halves  of 

vieAv0'  of' "theTront   the  tongue.  This  appears  to  be  a  con- 
portion    of    the 

of   EU-   stant  phenomenon  in  some  butter- 

Philooice, 

1  covering   flies  5  but  in  others  (compare  Figs.  50 
°f    °n§aseai   an(l  51)  it  is  sometimes  present  and 
tongue  "hffeath';  \\    at  others  absent ;    that  the  tongue 

fii>t  pair  oflegs ;  2,      .        ,  »    .  n  .  n  .  .         . 

second  pair  of  legs;    itseli  is  not  exposed  at  this  point  is 

a,  antenual  sheath. 

proved  by  its  being  formed  of  a 
single,  not,  as  the  tongue  itself,  of  a  double  piece. 

Next  the  extreme  base  of  the  tongue,  and  abut- 
ting against  it  on  either  side,  are  the  mandible- 
cases,  small  plates,  not  separated  at  their  base 
from  the  integument  of  the  head,  and  often  re- 
duced to  mere  tubercles  ;  indeed  their  appearance 
is  so  slight  that  I  do  not  know  if  their  existence 
has  ever  been  specially  noticed. 

On  either  side  of  the  head,  close  to  the  base  of 


THE    CHRYSALIS.  41 

the  antennae  and  partially  overlapped  by  them, 
is  a  smooth  crescent-shaped  belt,  which  corre- 
sponds closely  in  position  with  the  curving  row  of 
simple  ocelli  in  the  head  of  the  caterpillar,  where 
it  is  generally  marked  by  a  distinct  impression  ; 
it  also  lies  across  the  middle  of  the  convexity 
which  marks  the  position  of  the  compound  eye  of 
the  inclosed  butterfly  ;  the  convex  case  of  the 
rest  of  the  eye  is  rough  and  coarse  like  the  chrys- 
alis skin  generally,  but  this  curved  ribbon  is 
smooth  and  thin,  and  regularly  embossed,  each 
gentle  elevation  apparently  cor- 
responding to  the  centre  of  a 
facet  of  a  compound  eye  [Fig. 
53 J.  Now  it  has  been  suggested 
that  this  belt  is  a  window  FIG.  53.- Head  of 

chrysalis  of  Euphoeades 

through  which  the  prisoner  may    Troiius;  side  view  to 

»       show  the  eye;  X  2. 

look  abroad ;  what  end  this 
would  serve  is  not  explained ;  nor  have  the 
structure,  form,  and  position  of  the  belt  been 
taken  into  consideration,  or,  so  far  as  I  am  aware, 
even  stated.  Two  things,  however,  may  be  re- 
marked :  first,  that  no  underlying  structure  has 
been  found  related  to  it  alone  ;  second,  that  as  an 
external  covering  of  an  eye  its  structure  is  mid- 
way between  that  of  the  caterpillar  and  the  per- 
fect insect.  May  it  not  be  a  relic  of  the  past,  the 
external  sign  of  what  once  was  ?  And  are  we  to 
look  upon  this  as  one  hint  that  the  archaic  but- 


THE    CHRYSALIS. 


FIG.  54.— Chrys- 
alis of  Polygonia 
Faunus,  nat.  size. 


terfly  in  its  transformations  passed  through  an 
active  pupal  stage,  like  the  lowest  insects  of  to- 
day, when  its  limbs  were  unsheathed, 
its  appetite  unabated,  and  its  daily 
necessities  required  the  use  of  a 
compound  eye,  such  as  would  result 
from  the  multiplication  and  con- 
glomeration of  simple  eyes  within 
the  normal  ocellar  field  of  the  larva  ? 
These,  it  is  true,  are  merely  specula- 
tions ;  but  we  must  not  rest  satisfied  with  any 
explanation  of  the  structure 
of  this  glassy  band  which 
does  not  account  for  its 
form  and  its  relation  to  the 
larval  row  of  tubercles. 

There  is  another  peculiarity  in  the  head  of 
certain  chrysalids  which  de- 
mands our  attention  and  an  ex- 
planation of  its  cause,  since  it 
is  found  in  some  groups  and 
not  in  others.  On  either  side 
of  the  head  there  is  often  a 
roughened  angulate  or  conical 
projection,  bearing  no  relation 
whatever  to  the  parts  beneath, 
but  looking  like  a  pair  of  clumsy 
horns  or  ears  projecting  forward 
[Fig.  54 ;  see  also  Figs.  49  and  50] ;  other  chrysalids 


FIG.    55.— Chrysalis  of  Lereraa 
Accius,  nat.  size. 


FIG.  56.—  Chrysalis  of 
Eurymus  Philodice,  nat. 
size  (Harris). 


THE    CHRYSALIS.  43 

have  the  front  extremity  prolonged  in  the  middle 
[FigS.  55,  56  ;  see  also  Fig.  52],  while 
the  sides  of  the  head  are  quite  smooth 
and  regular  ;  others  again  have  the 
same  smooth  and  bluntly  rounded 
head  [Fig.  57]  which  generally  char- 
acterizes the  pupa  of  moths.  Since 
these  projections  are  mere  extensions  Mop*> nat- 8ize< 
of  the  pellicle  and  quite  hollow,  it  might  be  pre- 
sumed that  they  indicated  some  variation  in  the 
_^  ~  ^e  °^  khe  cnrysalis  ;  an(i  such  in- 
v5§§?  deed  is  the  fact.  Many  chrysalids 

ii8FSr  HeodesCH7PSo-~  are  protected  by  some  sort  of  a 
phiaeas,  nat.  size.  cocoon  ;  and  these  have  perfectly 
smooth  and  rounded  heads ;  so,  too,  have  those 
which,  though  exposed,  are  girt  immovably  to  the 


Fia   59  —Chrysalis  of  Laertias  Philenor,  nat.  size;  a,  dorsal  view;  b,  side 
view.    (After  Harris.) 

object  they  have  chosen  as  their  support  [Fig.  58]. 
Other  chrysalids  are  attached  by  the  tail  and 


44 


THE   CHRYSALIS. 


FIG.  60.— Chrysalis  of  Eu- 
phoeades  Troilus,  nat.  size. 


loosely  bound  about  tlie  middle  by  a  girth  which 
allows  the  body  to  sway  from  side  to  side  [Figs.  59, 
60]  ;  while  still  others  hang  freely  by  their  hinder 
extremity.  In  these  two  latter 
cases  the  chrysalids  may  be 
blown  hither  and  thither  by 
every  breeze  and  are  liable  to 
injury  from  neighboring  ob- 
jects ;  their  point  of  greatest 
motion  is  of  course  the  head, 
and  this,  therefore,  is  guard- 
ed by  projecting  roughnesses. 
In  those  which  hang  freely 
there  are  some  exceptions  to  this  rule,  as  in  the 
case  of  our  Milk- weed  butterfly  [Fig.  61],  but 
even  here  little  conical  tubercles  may  be  dis- 
covered ;  and,  besides,  the  chrys- 
alis stage  of  this  species  is  passed 
in  midsummer,  and  therefore  is 
very  brief.  So  far  as  I  am 
aware,  every  chrysalis  w?tich 
lives  through  the  winter,  and 
whose  body  hangs  at  the  mercy 
of  the  wind,  has  its  head  pro- 
tected as  I  have  described ; 
those  which  hang  freely  have  al- 
ways the  two  frontal  projections  ;  those  which 
are  also  loosely  girt  about  the  middle  sometimes 
have  the  same  ;  or  they  may  have  the  single  ex- 


Pro.  61.— Chrysalis  of 
Danai*  Plexippus,  nat. 
size  (Riley). 


THE   CHRYSALIS.  45 

tension  in  front.     It  may  also  be  noticed  that 
chrysalids  with  extraordinary  projections  or  ridges 
in  other  parts  of  the  body  all  belong  to  the  same 
free-moving  groups   [Fig.  62  ;    see 
also  Fig.  59] ;  the  greater  the  dan- 
ger  to    the    chrysalis    from    sur- 
rounding objects,    the    greater  its 
protection  by  horny  tubercles  and 
roughened    callous     ridges ;      the 
greater  the  protection  possessed  in 
other  ways,  as  by  firm  swathing  or 
a  safe  retreat,  the  smoother  the  sur-    }gl «-f 
face  of  the  body  and  the  more  reg- 
ular  and  rounded  its  contours. 

During  the  caterpillar  stage,  the  three  joints 
corresponding  to  the  thorax  of  the  future  butter- 
fly are  of  nearly  equal  size,  each  having  one  pair 
of  legs  ;  in  the  butterfly,  however,  the  second  and 
third  joints  also  bear  the  wings,  which  become 
the  principal,  we  might  almost  say  exclusive, 
organs  of  motion  ;  these  joints  therefore  are  devel- 
oped at  the  expense  of  the  first ;  and  as  the  front 
wings  are  always  larger  than  the  hinder  pair,  and 
by  their  position  require  more  muscular  force, 
the  joint  of  the  thorax  which  supports  them  is 
always  proportionally  larger.  The  preparation 
for  this  necessity  is  seen  in  the  chrysalis,  where 
the  wings  are  already  developed  ;  to  a  great  ex- 
tent this  is  true  even  in  the  blues  and  their  allies, 


46  THE   CHRYSALIS. 

in  which  the  prothorax  of  the  larva  is  immensely 
enlarged,  permitting,  as  we  have  seen,  the  entire 
withdrawal  of  the  head. 

There  is  only  one  other  point  in  connection 
with  the  thorax  which  need  detain  us.  In  the 
caterpillar  we  found  a  spiracle  in  the  middle  of 
the  side  of  the  first  ring.  In  the  chrysalis,  how- 
ever, we  have  shown  that  the  middle  joint  of  the 
thorax  is  developed  at  the  expense  of  the  front 
joint,  and  the  latter  is  further  curtailed  by  the 
sheaths  covering  the  extended  mouth-parts  to  such 
a  degree  that  it  is  reduced  externally  to  a  slender 
dorsal  plate  ;  the  spiracle  is  therefore  transferred 
to  the  suture  between  the  outer  portion  of  this 
dorsal  plate  and  the  middle  joint ;  indeed  it 
seems  rather  to  belong  to  the  latter,  for  it  is  often 
protected  at  this  point  by  a  thickening  of  the 
middle  joint,  occasionally  developing  to  a  tubercle 
[Fig.  63]  ;  this  spiracle  and  those 
upon  the  sides  of  the  abdominal 
joints  are  the  only  openings  into  the 
interior  of  the  body  ;  the  digestive 
tube  is  closed  at  both  ends ;  no 
glands  find  an  external  outlet,  and 

Tityrus,     showing 

1*h?rJC2CSplracleat  so  l^tle  aeration  is  required  for  the 
fluids  of  the  body  during  its  strange 
dormancy,  that  in  the  higher  groups  this  thoracic 
spiracle  is  lost  and  the  larger  part  of  the  body 
receives  its  air  through  the  openings  at  the  op- 


THE    CHRYSALIS.  47 

posite  end  and  the   secondary  channels  which 
course  along  the  body. 

The  abdomen  is  always  of  a  subconical  shape, 
tapering  toward  the  hinder  extremity,  and  more 
or  less  constricted  where  it  joins  the  thorax.  The 
spiracles  remain  in  the  same  position  as  in  the 
caterpillar,  excepting  on  the  first  segment,  which 
is  so  far  covered  by  the  folded  wings  that  the 
spiracle  is  lost,  and  the  segment  reduced  to  a 
small  dorsal  plate  ;  at  the  extremity  of  the  body, 
however,  an  apparently  new  structure  is  devel- 
oped, the  cremaster,  or  anal  button,  a  slender 
tubercular  prolongation  at  the  extremity  of  the 
body.  Kiley,  however,  has  shown*  that  it  is  not 
a  new  structure,  but  that  it  corresponds  to  the 
anal  plate  (or  hindmost  segment)  of  the  cater- 
pillar. Kiinckel  indeed  contendsf  that  it  repre- 
sents the  soldered  anal  prolegs  of  the  caterpillar ; 
but  Biley  clearly  proves  that  these  are  repre- 
sented in  the  chrysalis  by  what  he  calls  the  sus- 
tentors,  ridges  on  the  ventral  surface  which  ter- 
minate anteriorly  in  little  knobs  or  hooks,  and 
play  an  important  part  in  pupation.  The  form 
of  the  cremaster  varies  considerably  in  different 
groups,  but  always  bears  on  its  tip,  or  under  sur- 
face, or  on  both,  a  crowd  of  microscopic  recurved 
hooks  [Fig.  64],  which,  in  chrysalidisation,  are 

*  Amer.  Entom.,  iii.,  162-167,  July,  1880. 

f  Comptes  Rendus,  xci.,  395-397,  August,  1880. 


48  THE    CHRYSALIS. 

plunged  into  the  silk  the  caterpillar  has  spun  for 
the  purpose,  and,  becoming  entangled  in  it,  keep 
the  chrysalis  in  place.  In  the  family  of  blues  and 
hair-streaks,  where  the  chrys- 
alis is  bound  closely  to  the 
surface  of  rest,  and  the  last 
joint  of  the  abdomen  is  curved 
under  the  bodv,  these  hooks 

a  b 

_,  are  seated  upon  the  segment 

Fio.  64  —a,  La=t  segment 


there  is  invariably  some  pro- 
longation of  the  tip,   which 
bristles  with  hooks. 

By  this  review,  we  see  how  admirably  the  form 
and  projections,  the  position  and  inactivity  of 
the  chrysalis  are  adapted  to  its  purpose.  Great 
changes  are  to  transpire  in  the  hidden  recesses  of 
the  body  ;  the  outer  integument  becomes  a  com- 
pa,ct,  hardened  case,  protected  at  every  needed 
point  by  roughened  projections  or  callous  shoul- 
ders ;  all  the  appendages  are  securely  ensheathed 
and  so  cemented  to  the  outer  integument  as  to 
form  part  and  parcel  of  it,  without  disturbing  its 
contours  ;  all  unnecessary  openings  are  firmly 
closed,  and  those  that  remain  are  carefully  guarded 
by  dense  callous  spots  ;  and  in  addition  hooked 
claws,  attached  to  the  thickened  tail,  fasten  the 
swinging  mummy  securely  in  its  place.  From 
this  inert  mass  shall  suddenly  spring,  like  well- 


THE   CHRYSALIS.  49 

clad  Minerva  from  the  head  of  Jove,  a  creature  of 
no  apparent  kinship  either  with  the  case  that  en- 
wrapped it  or  the  lowly  worm  that  preceded  the 
chrysalis ;  a  creature  with  soft,  elastic  body, 
buoyant  as  the  air  in  which  it  floats,  with  spread- 
ing feelers  and  broad-spanned  wings,  clothed  with 
jewelled  dust  and  silken  hair,  which  reflect  the 
colors  of  the  rainbow,  and  in  their  delicate  com- 
binations defy  the  painter's  palette.  But  how  did 
such  a  creature,  whose  plumage  is  ruffled  by  a 
breath  of  wind,  escape  from  its  iron  prison,  hard- 
ened by  months  of  exposure  to  wintry  cold  and 
sleet  and  sun  in  rapid  succession  \  There  is  a 
weak  point  in  every  structure,  and  in  the  chrys- 
alis it  lies  next  the  point  of  greatest  strength  in 
the  captive  butterfly.  The  butterfly  never  emerges 
in  winter,  but  when  the  more  genial  showers  of 
spring  or  the  damp  air  of  a  summer's  night  have 
softened  the  texture  of  its  prison- walls,  they  are 
further  weakened  by  the  moisture  now  exuded 
by  the  twice- bound  prisoner  feeling  the  hour  of 
final  release  draw  near.  A  suture  along  the  crest 
of  the  thorax  gives  way,  often  with  a  perceptible 
click,  to  the  force  of  the  great  muscular  mass 
within  ;  the  rest  is  easy  ;  the  rent  is  continued  on 
both  sides  down  other  sutures,  until  a  door  is 
open,  whose  smooth  inner  walls  suffer  no  harm  to 
the  delicate  creature  struggling  to  escape.  Slowly 
the  limbs  are  withdrawn  from  their  encasements, 


50  THE   CHRYSALIS. 

cautiously  the  butterfly  climbs  the  friendly  twig 
that  has  been  its  support,  and  sitting  in  the  sun- 
shine dries  its  moist  quivering  wings,  gently  fan- 
ning them  up  and  down,  until,  full  of  new  life 
and  courage,  it  ventures  forth — a  thing  of  beauty 
and  a  joy  forever. 


CHAPTER  IY. 

THE   BUTTEKFLY. 

MORE  than  fifty  years  ago,  that  prince  of 
dreamers,  Oken,  wrote  as  follows  :*  "  The  insect 
passes  through  three  stages  prior  to  its  attaining 
the  adult  or  perfect  condition.  It  is  at  first 
Worm,  next  Crab,  then  a  perfect  volant  animal 
with  limbs,  a  Fly." 

How  sagacious  this  observation  was  appears 
from  what  we  have  already  seen.  In  external 
form  the  caterpillar  so  closely  resembles  a  worm 
that  in  common  language  it  is  often  so  called  ;  it 
drags  its  whole  length  upon  the  ground  ;  its  body 
consists  of  a  series  of  rings  placed  end  to  end  ;  its 
head,  it  is  true,  is  more  or  less  separated  from  the 
rest  of  the  body,  but  yet  agrees  so  well  in  general 
size  and  form  with  the  segments  behind  that  the 
distinction  only  appears  upon  examination  ;  while 
the  difference  between  the  joints  forming  the 
future  thorax  and  those  of  the  abdomen  can  only 
be  traced  by  careful  study.  In  the  pupal  stage, 
although  the  line  of  separation  between  thorax 
and  abdomen  is  well  marked,  and  the  latter  is 

*  Elements  of  Physiophilosophy,  Engl.  ed.,  p.  542. 


52  THE  BUTTERFLY. 

composed  of  many  joints  movable  one  upon 
another,  all  special  distinction  between  the  head 
and  thorax  is  lost,  and  their  segments  are  immov- 
ably soldered  into  one  common  tract.  This  is  an 
exact  temporary  repetition  of  the  more  important 
distinctive  features  of  the  crab  and  lobster,  where 
the  head  and  thorax  are  united  by  a  common 
shield  into  a  cephalo thorax,  while  the  joints  of 
the  abdomen  are  freely  movable.  This,  then,  is 
what  Oken  meant  when  he  pointedly  calls  the 
pupa,  Crab. 

When  we  reach  the  final  stage  of  the  butterfly's 
life,  which  we  shall  now  consider,  we  find  its 
prime  distinction  to  be  the  clustering  of  the  joints 
of  its  body  into  three  perfectly  separate  regions- 
head,  thorax,  and  abdomen,  each  with  its  peculiar 
and  differently  developed  appendages. 

Now,  since  the  worm-like  or  larval  stage  of  in- 
sects is  the  most  immature,  and  the  crustacean 
or  pupal  stage  lies  intermediate  between  it  and 
the  perfect  form,  Agassiz  urges,  in  his  remark- 
able "  Essay  on  the  classification  of  insects,"* 
that  worms,  Crustacea,  and  insects  are  three  classes 
of  one  type  of  the  animal  kingdom,  of  which 
worms  must  be  considered  the  lowest  and  insects 
the  highest.  On  the  same  ground  he  divides  the 
insects  themselves  into  three  groups,  and  places 

*  Smithsonian  Contribution  to  Knowledge,  vol.  ii. 


THE  BUTTERFLY,  53 

lowest  among  them  the  myriapods,  as  caterpillar 
or  worm-like  insects ;  in  the  middle  place  the 
spiders,  as  pupal  or  crustacean  insects  ;  and  high- 
est of  all  the  true  or  hexapod  insects  with  their 
triregional  body. 

How  far-reaching,  then,  is  the  relation  between 
the  earlier  and  the  perfected  form  of  insects,  and 
of  how  much  importance  it  is  to  study  the  suc- 
cessive stages  of  development  of  animal  life.  Do 
we  not  here  see,  too,  what  indissoluble  bonds 
unite  the  general  features  of  structure  among 
allied  creatures  and  the  historical  development  of 
each  ?  How  complicated,  comprehensive,  divine  a 
plan  runs  through  the  organization  and  relation- 
ship of  animal  life  !  Unless  we  can  in  some  meas- 
ure comprehend  and  regard  that  plan,  we  lose 
sight  of  at  least  one  chief  end  of  the  prodigality 
of  nature — the  harmony  of  divine  and  human 
thought. 

Let  us  pass  now  to  the  consideration  of  the 
changes  which  the  different  parts  and  organs  of 
the  insects  we  are  discussing  have  undergone. 
We  shall  compare  these  directly  with  the  corre- 
sponding parts  of  the  caterpillar,  because,  in  treat- 
ing of  the  structure  of  the  chrysalis,  at  least  so 
far  as  the  appendages  are  concerned,  we  have 
really  described  the  appearance,  not  of  the  ap- 
pendages themselves,  but  of  the  sheaths  in  which 
they  were  inclosed.  In  reality  the  difference  be- 


54:  THE  BUTTERFLY, 

tween  the  chrysalis  and  the  imago  is  far  less  than 
that  between  the  caterpillar  and  the  chrysalis,  the 
wrinkled  sheaths  of  the  chrysalis  confining  parts 
which  differ  in  little  more  than  size  from  the  per- 
fected organs  of  the  imago.  It  is  into  the  period 
of  quiescence  at  the  close  of  the  caterpillar  state, 
a  period  of  only  twenty-four  to  forty-eight  hours, 
that  are  crowded  nearly  all  the  really  wonderful 
alterations  of  structure  in  these  insects,  alterations 
which  affect  not  only  the  form 
and  relationship  of  the  external 
parts,  but  also  those  of  all  the  in- 
ternal organs. 

The  head  of  the  butterfly  [Fig. 
65]  differs  somewhat  in  general 
form  from  that  of  the  caterpillar, 
the  sides  being  greatly  enlarged 
and  occupied  by  a  pair  of  com- 

Fro.  65.-Side  view  „ 

ofheadofEpargyreud    pound  eyes  of  enormous  extent, 

Tityrus,  nat.  size. 

supplanting  the  minute  area  oc- 
cupied by  the  simple  ocelli  of  the  larva,  or  the 
more  extended  and  highly  organized  ocellar  riband 
of  the  pupa  ;  these  eyes  are  convex  hemispheres, 
whose  face  is  divided  into  innumerable  hexagonal 
facets  scarcely  more  than  one-hundredth  of  a 
millimetre  in  diameter,  arranged  with  great  regu- 
larity, each  with  its  underlying  structure  of  rod 
and  nerve,  representing  a  single  eye. 
The  immense  development  of  the  eyes  has  quite 


THE  BUTTERFLY.  55 

altered  the  relation  of  the  different  parts  of  the 
head  ;  in  the  caterpillar  the  antennae  lay  directly 
beneath  the  crescent  of  ocelli  ;  in  the  butterfly, 
on  the  contrary,  they  are  situated  directly  above 
the  eyes  ;  the  expansion  of  the  ocellar  field  has 
been  at  the  expense  of  the  parts  above  it,  and  in 
this  contraction  the  antennae  have  passed  upward 
in  front  of  the  growing  ocellar  field  until  they  are 
found  quite  above  it.  In  the  perfect  stage  of 
many  of  the  lower  lepidopterous  insects,  and  in 
a  single  one  of  our  butterflies,  a  pair  of  ocelli  are 
found  directly  behind  the  antennae,  and  are,  ap- 
parently, the  hindmost  of  the  larval  ocelli,  which, 
it  will  be  recollected,  form  no  part  of  the  little  cres- 
cent in  which  the  others  fall,  and  do  not  modify 
the  form  of  the  pupal  ocellar  riband  ;  these  ocelli 
have  passed  around  the  growing  ocellar  field  on 
the  opposite  side,  to  find  themselves  at  last  nearer 
than  before  to  the  antennae,  which  have  travelled 
by  the  opposite  road. 

The  antennae  themselves  have  undergone  as 
profound  a  change  in  their  structure  as  in  their 
position  ;  in  the  larva  they  closely  resemble  the 
maxillae,  being  made  up  of  a  very  few  joints 
steadily  decreasing  in  size,  the  penultimate  bearing 
a  long  and  simple  bristle.  In  the  perfect  butter- 
fly they  are  composed  of  a  great  number  of  joints 
which  may  be  grouped  into  three  parts — the  base, 
the  stalk,  and  the  club  ;  the  first  two  joints  form 


56  .  THE  BUTTERFLY. 

the  base,  and  differ  from  the  remainder  in  their 
greater  size  ;  most  of  the  movements  of  the  anten- 
nae are  due  to  the  freedom  of  motion  of  these  basal 
joints  ;  the  stalk  is  a  mere  jointed  thread,  and  the 
club  only  an  enlargement  of  the  final  joints, 
where  they  lose  in  length  what  they  gain  in  thick- 
ness [Fig.  66]  ;  the  extent  and  shape  of  this  club 
vary  widely  among  butterflies  and  often  form  a 
valuable  guide  to  their  real  relationship.  The 
antennae  may  be  bare  or  they  may 
be  clothed  to  a  greater  or  less  extent 
with  scales  similar  to  those  which 
cover  the  wings  ;  but  in  the  latter  case 
there  is  nearly  always  a  naked  space 
along  the  under  surface,  and  particu- 
larly on  the  club,  where  it  is  provid- 
FIG.  66.-cinb  ed  with  microscopic  pits,  connecting 

of  antenna  of  Xan-  . 

thidia     Nicippe,   with  delicate  nerves,  which  are  un- 

X  25.     The  view 

innS  iowfer°sidehe   doubtedly  organs  of  sense,  but  whose 

use  is  not  yet  fully  understood. 
Coming  next  to  the  mouth-parts  of  the  butterfly, 
we  shall  find  it  difficult  to  believe  that  the  won- 
derful apparatus  by  which  the  insect  now  pro- 
cures its  food  in  the  depths  of  tubular  flowers  is 
simply  a  development  of  parts  already  in  exist- 
ence in  an  earlier  stage,  when  by  means  of  horny 
jaws  it  made  such  havoc  among  the  leaves  of 
its  food-plant.  The  principal  mouth-parts  are  a 
long,  slender,  flexible  tube,  rolled  up  precisely 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 


57 


like  a  watch-spring  ;  and,  guarding  it  on  either 
side,  a  large  jointed  appendage,  densely  clothed 
with  scales  and  hairs,  and  often  projecting  for- 
ward or  upward  like  feathery  horns.  No  other 
parts  are  visible,  and  even  when  we  remove  these 
mufflers  of  the  head,  and  expose  all  the  parts 
about  the  mouth,  we  shall  be  puzzled  to  know 
what  has  become  of  the  caterpillar's  varied  forag- 
ing parapherna- 
lia. Its  labrum 
was  a  swinging 
flap  of  mem- 
brane by  which 
it  appeared  to 
force  its  food 
between  its 
jaws  ;  its  biting 
mandibles  mas- 
sive  horny 
plates  with 
chiseled  edges, 
by  means  of  which  it  nibbled  the  leaves ;  the 
former  is  now  represented  [Fig.  67]  by  a  slight 
rounded  immovable  projection  of  the  front,  whose 
only  office  is  to  serve  as  a  support  to  the  base  of 
the  long  spiral  tongue  ;  and  the  latter,  the  main 
agents  of  the  caterpillar's  work,  are  reduced  to 
two  little  triangular  projections,  one  on  either 
side  of  the  tongue  ;  they  are  now  soldered  firmly 


met 


FIG.  67. — Front  view  of  head  of  Danais  Archip- 
pus,  with  the  scales  removed  ;  oc,  compound  eyirs; 
a  a,  base  of  antennae;  cl,  clypeus  ;  If),  labrnm; 
md.  mandible,  edged  with  bristles;  tk,  base  of  the 
maxillae  or  spiral  tongue;  x  10  (Burgess). 


58  THE   BUTTERFLY. 

to  the  head  and  remain  as  relics  of  a  former  stage. 
Rudimentary  organs  are  by  no  means  uncom- 
mon among  animals,  even  where  they  never  are 
of  the  slightest  use  to  the  creature  during  any 
portion  of  "its  present  life.  Viewed  in  the  light 
of  modern  scientific  investigation  into  the  history 
and  relationship  of  animals,  we  are  quite  justified 
in  concluding  that  organs,  having  no  full  devel- 
opment and  no  present  use,  must  in  some  past 
period  have  had  their  full  part  to  play  in  the 
economy  of  the  animal  in  which  they  are  found. 
"  Rudimentary  organs,"  says  Darwin,*  "  may  be 
compared  with  the  letters  in  a  word,  still  retained 
in  the  spelling,  but  become  useless  in  the  pronun- 
ciation, but  which  serve  as  a  clue  in  seeking  for 
its  derivation."  Such  organs,  therefore,  possess 
the  highest  interest,  and  it  was  on  this  account 
that  I  felt  justified  on  a  preceding  page  in  specu- 
lating on  the  possible  meaning  of  the  ocellar  belt 
of  the  chrysalis. 

From  the  mandibles  we  pass  to  the  neighboring 
organs,  the  maxillae.  In  the  larva,  these  parts 
consist,  on  either  side,  of  a  pair  of  appendages  of 
simple  structure,  seated  on  a  common  hemispher- 
ical prominence  and  possessing  only  the  power  of 
withdrawal  and  protrusion  ;  the  outer  and  larger 
consists  of  several  joints  ;  the  inner  of  only  a 

*  Origin  of  Species,  sixth  ed.,  p.  402. 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 


59 


single  joint,  which  becomes  enormously  devel- 
oped in  the  butterfly  to  form  a  sucking  organ  of 
curious  construction  ;  while  the  outer  appendage 
becomes  the  maxillary  palpus,  reduced  to  a  couple 
of  minute  joints  or  even  less,  only  to  be  detected 
by  the  most  careful  observer,  and  physiologically 
null.  As  this  sucking  mouth  is  one  of  the  most 
characteristic  parts  of  the  perfect  butterfly,  we 
will  examine  it  more  closely.  Although  almost 


ant. 


FIG.  68.— Cross-section  of  the  maxillae  or  tongue  of  Danais  Plexippus  (the 
anterior  portion  uppermost)  to  show  the  mode  in  which  the  two  halves  unite 
to  form  a  central  canal  (c);  fr%  tracheae;  n,  nerves  ;  m,  ra2,  muscles  of  one  side; 
X  about  125  (Burgess). 

entirely  concealed  when  coiled,  it  is  frequently  as 
long  as  the  entire  body,  and  consists  of  two  lat- 
eral halves  united  down  the  middle  ;  each  part  is 
composed  of  an  immense  number  of  short,  trans- 
verse rings,  which  are  convex  on  the  outer  sur- 
face, concave  on  the  inner  [Fig.  68]  ;  and  it  is  by 
the  union  of  these  inner  concavities  that  a  central 
tube  is  formed.  The  lateral  rings  are  also  partial- 
ly hollow,  and  have,  therefore,  been  supposed  by 


60  THE  BUTTERFLY. 

some  to  form  the  sucking  tube,  in  which  case  the 
insect  might  be  said  to  have  two  mouths,  for  there 
would  be  two  entrances  to  the  oesophagus.  This, 
however,  is  not  the  case,  the  interior  of  each  lat- 
eral half  being  filled  with  muscles,  tracheae,  and 
nerves  for  the  movement  of  the  organ.  The  rings 
of  which  it  is  composed  are  made  up  of  a  great 
number  of  plates,  united  by  the  more  yielding 
part  of  the  cuticle,  allowing  of  great  freedom  of 
motion.  These  rings  throw  off,  at  the  points 
where  the  convex  and  concave  sides  meet,  a  series 
of  oblique,  curving  plates  or  hooks,  which,  when 
the  two  maxillae  are  brought  together,  interlace 
in  the  most  complete  manner,  to  form  a  perfectly 
flexible  yet  impervious  tube.  The  outer  walls  of 
the  lateral  tubes  are  supplied  with  curious  papil- 
lae of  greatly  varying  shapes,  size,  and  abundance 
in  different  groups  [see  Figs.  178,  179],  but,  in 
general,  more  highly  organized  and  abundant  in 
the  highest  family.  These  must  probably  be  re- 
garded as  organs  of  taste.  Within  either  half  of 
the  maxillae,  oblique  muscles  exist  [Fig.  69]  serv- 
ing to  coil  the  whole  into  the  watch-spring-like 
form  in  which  it  is  packed  away  when  at  rest. 

But  now  that  we  comprehend  the  structure  of 
this  wonderful  piece  of  mechanism,  and  can  ap- 
preciate the  change  that  has  been  wrought  in  its 
development  from  an  utterly  simple,  almost 
microscopic  joint,  do  we  understand  any  better  its 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 


61 


actual  use  in  extracting  honey  from  flowers  ? 
Some  have  thought  that  the  upward  flow  was  due 
to  capillary  motion  ;  some  to  the  action  of  the  so- 
called  sucking  stomach,  a  sac-like  expansion  of 
the  alimentary  canal  just 
in  advance  of  the  true 
stomach  ;  others  that  it  is 
forced  on  by  successive 
undulations  and  contrac- 
tions of  the  tube  itself. 
The  investigations  of  one 
of  oar  own  naturalists* 
has,  however,  recently 
shown  the  existence  of  a 
muscular  sac  within  the 
head  [Fig.  70],  at  the 
origin  of  the  alimentary 
tract,  furnished  with  a 
valve  at  its  front  extrem- 
ity where  it  opens  into 
the  maxillary  canal. 
When  the  radiating  mus- 
cles running  from  the 
walls  of  the  head  to  the  periphery  of  this  sac  are 
contracted  [Fig.  71],  the  sac  is  opened,  and  into 
the  vacuum  thus  produced  the  fluids  into  which 
the  maxillae  are  plunged  ascend.  On  the  relaxa- 


FIG.  69.— Longitudinal  section  of 
one  maxilla  of  Danais  Plexippus  to 
show  the  interior  muscles  (m) 
which  coil  it  and  the  nerve  (ri)  and 
the  trachea  (tr)  which  pass  through 
it;  X  about  125  (Burgess). 


*  E.  Burgess,  Amer.  Nat.,  xiv.,  313-319. 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 

tion  of  these  muscles  and  the  squeezing  of  the  sac 
by  the  muscles  which  encircle  it,  the  fluids,  pre- 
vented by  the  valve  from  retreating  the  way  they 
came,  are  forced  down  the  alimentary  canal. 

The  only  part  of  the  head  of  which  we  have  not 
spoken  is  the  labium  and  its  appendages  ;  in  the 


FIG.  70. — Longitudinal  section  of  head  of  Danais  Plexippus  to  show  the 
pharyngeal  sac ;  mx,  left  maxilla,  the  right  being  removed  ;  wfl,  floor  of  the 
mouth  cavity  or  sac  ;  oe,  oesophagus  ;  ov,  oral  valve  ;  srf,  salivary  duct  ;  dm 
and  //ft,  dorsal  and  frontal  muscles  which  open  the  sac  ;  the  cut  ends  of  the 
transversely  encircling  muscles  are  seen  above  the  sac,  X  20  (Burgess). 

larva  these  consisted  of  the  spinneret,  and  on 
either  side  of  it  a  minute  jointed  palpus  like  that 
of  the  maxillae.  In  the  butterfly,  the  spinneret 
is  gone,  but  the  palpi  have  become  developed  into 
a  three-jointed  organ,  often  of  considerable  size, 
with  inflated  joints,  all  profusely  clothed  with 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 


63 


scales  and  hairs,  forming  a  bristling  guard  on 
either  side  of  the  face  [see  Fig.  65].  The  size  and 
relations  of  the  different  joints  vary  considerably 
in  different  groups  ;  they  may  all  be  very  small 
and  look  as  if  they  were  merely  the  scaly  cover- 
ing of  the  front  of  the  face,  or  they  may  pro- 


p.m ._• 


FIG.  71.— Interior  view  of  the  bottom  of  the  head  of  Danais  Plexippus  to  show 
the  top  of  the  pharyngeal  sac  and  the  muscles  which  distend  it,  X  16  ;  cl, 
clypens  ;  cor,  cornea  of  the  eye ;  oe,  oesophagus  ;  the  muscles  are  :  fm,  the 
frontal ;  dm,,  the  dorsal,  and  Im,  the  lateral  ;  pm,  muscles  moving  the  palpus 
(Burgess). 

ject  straight  forward  with   a  threatening  aspect 
almost  as  far  as  the  antennae. 

We  pass  now  to  the  middle  region  of  the  body, 
the  thorax.  Here  the  first  segment,  or  prothorax, 
is  reduced  to  a  most  insignificant  part,  and  the 
only  wonder  is  that  it  is  capable  of  .supporting  a 


64  THE  BUTTERFLY. 

pair  of  legs,  often  as  large  as  the  others  [Fig. 

72].     The  middle  and  hinder  segments  together 

form  a  compact  vaulted  oval  mass,  wholly  con- 
cealed by  scales  and  hairs,  but  di- 
vided by  a  number  of  sutures  into 
the  many  parts  which  form  the  seg- 
ments of  the  thorax.  The  middle 
segment,  moreover,  is  developed  to 
PIG.  72. -Pro-  a  ^ar  larger  extent  than  the  hind- 

of°Sfsoathorai01of   most,   in   order  to   carry  the  front 

Vanessa  Atalanta,          .  ,   .    _  ,,.    ,    , 

with  scales  remov-   wings,     which     during     night    are 
obliged   to   meet  in  great  measure 
the  resistance  of  the  wind,  and  are  therefore  fur- 
nished with  more  muscles. 

The  appendages  of  the  thorax  are  the  legs, 
wings,  and  shoulder  lappets.  As  in  the  earlier 
stages,  a  pair  of  legs  is  attached  to  each  segment, 
but  these  legs  are  very  different  from  the  old  ap- 
pendages ;  they  are  now  mere  sticks,  each  divided 
into  five  principal  pieces,  called  coxa,  trochanter, 
femur,  tibia,  and  tarsus.  The  coxae  or  haunches 
are  often  prominent,  having  the  shape  of  pyra- 
midal stems,  more  than  half  consolidated  with 
the  body  and  with  each  other,  extending  ob- 
liquely downward  and  backward,  and  forming  in 
this  way  a  strong  support  to  the  hinder  part  of 
the  thorax,  which  is  the  real  centre  of  gravity  of 
the  body.  The  trochanter  is  only  a  short  joint 
between  the  haunches  and  the  thighs,  carrying  the 


THE  BUTTERFLY.  65 

base  of  the  latter  a  little  outward  and  giving  them 
greater  freedom  of  motion.  With  the  thighs,  or 
femora,  the  principal  part  of  the  movable  leg  be- 
gins [see  Figs.  172-177]  ;  they  are  straight,  long, 
and  slender,  perfectly  simple  in  structure  and 
clothed  only  with  scales  or  hairs,  the  latter  often 
forming  fringes  along  the  edge  ;  in  them  lies 
most  of  the  muscular  mass  of  the  legs  ;  the  tibiae 
or  shanks  are  also  straight,  but  much  slenderer 
than  the  thighs  and  of  about  the  same  length  ; 
when  the  insect  is  resting  or  walking  they  are 
usually  held  at  about  right  angles  with  the 
thighs  ;  they  are  always  scaled,  and  generally 
furnished  throughout  with  one  or  two  rows  of 
spines,  besides  a  pair  of  longer  movable  spines  or 
spurs  at  the  tip.  In  the  lowest  butterflies  the 
front  tibiae  bear  a  slender  leal-like  appendage 
projecting  from  the  middle  of  the  inner  sur- 
face, and  clothed  with  a  velvety  down  [see  Fig. 
173]  ;  its  use  or  purport  is  wholly  unknown,  but 
its  position  reminds  us  of  the  extraordinary  tym- 
pana on  the  front  legs  of  crickets  and  long-horned 
grasshoppers,  which  are  unquestionably  organs 
of  hearing  and  occur  only  in  those  groups  which 
stridulate  the  loudest.  The  few  butterflies,  how- 
ever, which  are  known  to  produce  sounds  belong 
to  the  highest  family  of  Lepidoptera,  in  which 
this  structure  is  totally  absent ;  and  whatever  its 
use  it  is  probably  only  a  modified  spur,  such  as 


66  THE  BUTTERFLY. 

is  sometimes  found  on  the  hind  shanks  ;  certainly 
it  originates  at  the  same  spot. 

The  tarsi,  or  feet,  are  normally  composed  of  five 
joints,  of  which  the  first  is  usually  as  long  as  all 
the  rest,  and  in  the  male  is  occasionally  swollen  ; 
with  this  exception  they  are  slenderer  than  the 
shank,  and  their  combined  length  generally  ex- 
ceeds it  [see  Figs.  173-177]  ;  they  are  scaled  and 
more  or  less  spiny  like  the  shank,  and  a  pair  of 
the  terminal  spines  of  each  joint  usually  exceed 
the  others  in-  length  ;  the  extremity  of  the  last 
segment,  however,  is  armed  in  a  different  way — by 
claws,  paronychia,  and  foot  pads  ;  the  claws  are  a 
pair  of  divergent  curving  hooks,  each  hook  some- 
times deeply  cleft  so  as  to  be  double ;  the  pa- 
ronychia, or  whitlows,  are  curious  membranous 
expansions,  which  almost  encircle  the  base  of  the 
claws  and  are  developed  in  various  ways,  at  the 
sides,  or  beneath,  into  flexible  imitations  of 
them  ;  sometimes  they  are  wholly  obliterated, 
but  they  are  generally  either  absent  or  somewhat 
similarly  developed  in  all  the  members  of  the 
same  large  group.  The  foot  pads  are  fleshy  mem- 
branous flaps,  often  pedunculated,  attached  to  the 
base  of  the  claws,  and  serving  as  soles  for  the 
feet ;  these,  too,  are  sometimes  wanting,  especially 
where  the  paronychia  are  absent. 

As  a  general  rule  the  six  legs  are  similar  in 
structure  and  proportions  ;  but  further  on  [see 


THE  BUTTERFLY.  67 

Figs.  174-177]  I  shall  call  attention  to  the  curi- 
ous fact  that  just  as  the  first  segment  of  the 
thorax  becomes  less  and  less  developed  as  the  in- 
sect changes  from  caterpillar  to  chrysalis  and 
from  chrysalis  to  imago,  so,  in  passing  from  the 
lower  to  the  higher  groups,  we  shall  find  a  grad- 
ual atrophy  of  the  legs  borne  by  the  first  segment 
of  the  thorax  ;  first,  the  different  joints  contract 
in  size  ;  next,  they  lose  a  part  of  their  armature  ; 
then,  adjoining  parts  become  consolidated,  imtil, 
finally,  the  tarsus  forms  only  a  single  piece, 
spines,  spurs,  pad,  paronychia,  and  claws  all  dis- 
appear, and  the  whole  leg  becomes  so  shrunken 
as  to  be  utterly  useless  and  readily  overlooked  ; 
practically,  the  animal  has  passed  from  a  six- 
legged  to  a  four-legged  condition  ;  in  this  instance 
we  can  trace  every  step  in  the  change  ;  and  al- 
though, in  the  extremest  case  of  atrophy,  the 
front  legs  have  not  reached  so  low  a  stage  as  to 
be  classed  with  wholly  rudimentary  organs,  yet 
it  is  plain  both  that  they  are  well  on  the  way  and 
that  their  original  condition — that  is,  the  condi- 
tion of  their  ancestors— was  one  in  which  the 
front  legs  were  fully  developed,  like  the  others. 
How  far  back  in  time  this  would  lead  us,  we  can- 
not guess  ;  the  geological  record  now  carries  but- 
terflies back  toward  the  end  of  the  lower  terti- 
aries  ;  but  some  of  the  earliest  fossil  butterflies 
belong  to  the  highest  portion  of  the  highest 


68  THE  BUTTERFLY. 

family,  and  are  intimately  allied  to  forms  now 
living  ;  portions  only  of  the  legs  are  preserved  on 
such  specimens  as  have  been  found  ;  but  while 
the  evidence  is  certainly  negative,  it  should  at 
least  be  remarked  that  there  is  no  indication  that 
the  condition  of  the  fore-legs  of  these  ancient 
creatures  differed  in  any  way  from  that  of  their 
allies  of  to-day  ;  so  we  are  forced  to  believe  that 
in  exploring  the  rocks  we  have  not  begun  to 
reach  the  early  forms  of  butterfly  life. 

We  come  now  to  the  consideration  of  the  wings 
of  butterflies.  Not  to  mention  for  the  moment 
their  exquisite  beauty,  they  possess  a  deep  inter- 
est in  that  they  are  totally  new  structures,  and 
the  first  we  have  met  in  our  review  of  the  charac- 
teristics of  the  perfect  insect.  The  parts  we  have 
before  examined — tongue,  palpi,  eyes,  antennae, 
legs— though  very  different  indeed  from  the 
organs  of  the  caterpillar,  have  nevertheless  been 
represented  in  it  by  corresponding  parts  ;  while 
we  should  look  there  in  vain  for  any  external 
trace  of  wings.  The  mode  of  their  origin  we  shall 
mention  later,  since,  strange  to  say,  it  must  be 
considered  in  treating  of  the  internal  parts  ;  but 
the  structure  of  the  completed  organ  merits  our 
closest  attention. 

•  The  wings  of  butterflies,  like  those  of  all  in- 
sects, are  attached,  one  pair  to  the  middle  and 
the  other  to  the  hinder  segment  of  the  thorax, 


THE  BUTTERFLY.  69 

und  consist  of  two  membranes  stretched  upon  a 
framework  of  tubular  rods,  which  run  between. 
In  butterflies  and  moths,  this  framework  and 
membrane  are  almost  wholly  concealed  by  a  thick 
layer  of  minute  scales,  which  overlie  one  another 
like  slates  on  the  roof  of 
a  house  [Fig.  73]  ;  this 
covering  has  gained  for 
these  insects  the  scien- 
tific name  of  Lepidop- 
tera,  or  scaly-winged  in- 
sects ;  and  it  is  probably 
on  account  of  this  con- 
cealment that  the  mode  FIG.  73.— Arrangement  of  scales  on 
,,  n.  .,  wings  of  Lepidoptera,  enlarged. 

of    distribution    of    the 

rods  forming  the  framework  of  the  wing  is  one 
of  the  simplest  among  insects,  although  the  but- 
terflies themselves  rank  high  in  the  order.  Nature 
seems  to  sport  with  everything  that  is  external, 
variety  being  the  law  as  well  as  "  the  very  spice  of 
life  ;"  for  while  the  hidden  and  interior  parts  of 
the  organization  of  animals  differ  in  the  main 
only  as  they  aifect  or  are  affected  by  their  habits 
and  dire  requirements,  the  outer  parts  are  attired 
with  a  wanton  display  of  luxurious  color  or  grace- 
ful or  even  grotesque  form  and  contour,  which 
bewitch  our  senses,  and,  the  naturalist  in  search  of 
real  affinities  among  animals  would  add,  confuse 
our  judgment ;  so  while  the  colors  and  patterns 


70 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 


of  a  butterfly's  wing  beggar  all  description  and 
outwit  imagination,  the  framework  of  the  gauze 
on  which  nature  has  set  the  mosaic  is  of  the  very 
simplest  kind ;  in  only  one  group  (Heliconii) 
does  it  show  any  aberration  and  surprise  us  by 
odd  turns  and  unexpected  meanderings  of  the 

veins  ;  and  this  is 
the  one  group  of 
butterflies  in 
whose  wings  we 
find  large  patches 
of  membrane  de- 
void of  scales. 

The  normal 
number  of  veins 
in  the  wings  of 
insects  is  six,  dis- 
posed to  a  certain 
extent  in  pairs 
[Fig.  74];  the 
middle  pair  usu- 

FIG.  74.— Veins  of  the  wing  in  Danaie  Plexip-     ally    branch    to    a 
pus,  nat.  size. 

greater  extent 

than  the  others,  and  support  most  of  the  mem- 
brane of  the  wing.  In  butterflies  the  foremost 
vein  is  always  absent,  and  very  commonly  also 
the  hindmost,  so  that  there  are  only  five  (often 
only  four)  principal  veins,  rather  inappropriately 
designated  costal,  subcostal,  median,  submedian, 


THE   BUTTERFLY. 


71 


and,  when  present;  internal.  The  costal,  subme- 
dian,  and  internal  veins  are  invariably  simple 
and  terminate  at  the 
margin  or  even  disap- 
pear before  reaching 
it.  The  subcostal  and 
median  veins,  on  the 
other  hand,  are  as 
invariably  branched, 
and  with  their  off- 
shoots support  nearly 
the  entire  wing  [Fig. 
75] ;  the  subcostal 
vein  curves  downward 
and  the  median  up- 
ward so  as  to  meet, 

or  nearly  meet,  about  the  middle  of  the  wing,  and 
to  inclose  between  them  a  large  space  called  the 
discoidal  cell ;  all  the  branches  of  the  median  vein 
are  thrown  off  from  its  lower  side 
before  union  with  the  subcostal  vein  ; 
the  principal  branches  of  the  sub- 
costal vein,  on  the  other  hand,  are 
thrown  off  from  its  upper  side  [Pig. 
76] ;  but  as  the  vein  curves  down- 
ward at  the  extremity  of  the  cell, 
another  set  is  thrown  off,  at  least  in 
the  front  wings,  from  the  lower  side  ;  and  it  is 
these  branches,  rather  than  the  subcostal  vein 


FIG.  75. — Veins  of  the  wing  in  Laertias 
Philenor,  nat.  size. 


Fio.  76. —Veins 
of  the  wing  in 
Euphyes  M  e  t  a  - 
comet,  nat.  size. 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 

proper,  which  unite  with  the  median  vein  to 
close  the  cell.  None  of  the  median  nor  any  of 
the  inferior  subcostal  branches  are  ever  forked  ; 
but  at  the  apex  of  the  front  wing,  where  the 
play  of  neuration  is  usually  the  greatest,  the 
last  superior  subcostal  branch  is  occasionally 
forked. 

The  neuration  of  the  wings,  then,  consists  of  an 
upper  and  a  lower  (or  two  lower)  simple  straight 
veins,  and  a  pair  of  middle  veins  which  unite 
with  or  approach  each  other  near  the  centre  of 
the  wing  ;  and  from  the  outer  edge  of  the  cell  or 
loop  thus  formed  throw  off  to  the  border  a  num- 
ber of  branches. 

The  wings  of  butterflies  are  very  large  in  pro- 
portion to  the  body  and  are  subtriangular  in 
shape,  particularly  the  front  pair ;  here  the 
broadest  side  is  at  the  front,  and  is  always  more 
or  less  convex,  and  closely  crowded  with  the 
strongest  veins  ;  just  as  in  a  bird  or  a  bat  the 
bones  of  the  wings  lie  next  the  front  margin, 
where  the  greatest  resistance  is  required  ;  in  the 
hind  wings  of  butterflies,  where  no  such  special 
resistance  occurs,  the  veins  are  almost  equally  dis- 
tributed, and  the  wing  itself  is  of  a  more  quad- 
rangular shape,  extending  equally  backward  and 
outward,  so  as  to  bring  the  middle  of  the  plane 
of  the  combined  wings  opposite  the  centre  of 
gravity  of  the  entire  body. 


THE  BUTTERFLY.  73 

At  the  base  of  the  anterior  margin  of  the  fore 
wing  is  a  horny  scale,  such  as  occurs  in  many 
other  insects  [see  Fig.  72],  These  scales  improp- 
erly bear  different  names  in  different  orders,  and 
in  butterflies  are  termed  patagia  or  shoulder  lap- 
pets ;  they  protect  the  extreme  base  of  the  wing, 
and  being  attached  to  the  body  only  at  their  front 
margin,  are  movable  and  do  not  interfere  with  the 
free  action  of  the  wing  ;  being  covered,  like  the 
thorax,  with  scales  and  hairs,  they  are  noticeable 
only  when  these  are  removed,  appearing  in  their 
natural  condition  to  f  orm  a  part  of  the  solid  body. 
Whether  they  should  be  considered  as  an  element 
of  the  middle  thoracic  ring,  or  an  appendage  to 
the  same,  has  not  been  proved ;  from  analogy 
with  other  parts  in  the  abdomen,  it  seems  prob- 
able that,  like  the  wings,  being  useful  to  the  in- 
sect only  in  its  perfect  stage,  they  also  are  new 
structures,  and  not  modifications  of  parts  already 
existing  in  the  caterpillar. 

The  only  other  point  of  interest  in  the  thorax 
are  the  spiracles,  of  which  there  is  only  a  single 
pair,  opening  upon  the  scaly  membrane  at  the 
hind  border  of  the  front  segment ;  as  in  the 
earlier  stages,  spiracles  are  wanting  upon  the 
middle  and  last  segments  of  the  thorax,  where 
the  wings  occur.  We  shall  again  refer  to  this 
point. 

About  half  the  bulk  of  the  butterfly's  body  is 


THE  BUTTERFLY. 


composed  of  the  abdomen,  though  in  the  female 
when  heavy  with  eggs  it  will  often  doubly  out- 
weigh the  parts  in  front ;  externally,  however,  it 
is  the  least  interesting  part  of  the  body.  It  is 
composed  of  eight  simple  rings  covered  with 
scales,  variegated,  if  at  all,  only  by  stripes  or 
series  of  dots,  and  bearing  upon  the  sides  of  the 
first  seven  segments  a  pair  of  spiracles  entirely 
concealed  by  scales.  As  in  other  insects,  one 
finds  at  the  extremity  pieces  of  very  variable  con- 
struction, which  here,  more  perhaps  than  else- 
where, have  the  appearance  of  forming  parts  of 
still  other  rings  ;  they  are,  however,  only  append- 
ages of  the  last  and  the  penultimate  segments  ; 
this  is  proved  by  what  is 
known  of  their  origin  and 
mode  of  growth  in  other  in- 
sects, where  they  often  have 
an  extraordinary  development, 
as  ovipositors  or  stings  in  one 
sex  or  as  nippers  in  the  other. 
They  are  entirely  new  struc- 
tures, arising  in  the  pupal 
stage,  first  as  mere  tubercles, 
then  as  outgrowths  from  the 
inferior  plates  of  the  body,  but 
afterward  becoming  attached  to  various  portions 
of  the  last  two  segments,  in  such  a  way  as  to 
allow  them  a  certain  freedom  of  motion,  and  often 


FIG.  77.  —  Asymmetrical 
appendages  of  the  right 
and  left  sides  of  the  abdo- 
men in  Thanaos  Eiinius, 
X  10. 


THE   BUTTERFLY.  75 

to  obscure  their  real  origin.  In  certain  male  but- 
terflies these  parts  are  asymmetrical  [Fig.  77], 
that  is,  they  are  not  altogether  similar  in  ap- 
pearance upon  the  two  sides,  a  phenomenon  diffi- 
cult of  explanation. 


CHAPTEE   Y. 

INTERNAL   ORGANS. 

WE  have  now  discussed  the  salient  points  of 
the  external  structure  of  caterpillars,  chrysalids, 
and  butterflies.  We  shall  not  consider  their  in- 
ternal organs  at  such  length,  partly  because  they 
cannot  in  themselves  possess  so  great  a  general 
interest,  and  also  because  they  have  not  yet  been 
sufficiently  studied  to  enable  one  to  present  a  de- 
tailed and  impartial  review.  After  a  short  survey 
in  this  chapter  of  their  peculiarities  in  the  cater- 
pillar, we  shall  turn  at  once  to  their  appearance 
in  the  butterfly,  and  trace  one  by  one  the  steps 
by  which  the  changes  are  effected. 

In  considering  the  external  crust  of  the  animal 
and  its  appendages,  we  have  been  able  by  its 
very  organization  to  examine  each  part  separately 
without  confusion  ;  and  even  to  recur  readily  to 
its  characteristics  when  we  afterward  wished  to 
follow  its  development ;  for,  by  the  division  of 
the  body  into  distinct  regions,  and  of  the  regions 
into  separate  rings,  each  bearing  its  special  ap- 
pendages, the  mind  could  readily  locate  these  and 
recall  them  when  necessary.  When,  however, 
we  come  to  the  internal  parts,  the  case  is  gener- 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  77 

ally  different ;  for  the  organs  run  in  a  longitu- 
dinal course  through  the  body  and  disregard  in 
great  measure  not  only  the  jointed  structure  but 
even  the  regional  distinctions  of  the  body.  To 
systematize  our  examination,  therefore,  we  must 
treat  them  differently,  and  separating  them  into 
natural  subdivisions  according  to  their  functions 
discuss  them  in  that  sequence  which  promises  to 
give  us  the  clearest  conception  of  their  use. 

As  the  basis  of  the  whole,  we  have  the  struc- 
tural framework  of  the  animal,  its  outer  crust ; 
and  since  power  of  movement  is  the  primal  need 
of  a  living  creature,  we  shall  first  consider  the 
muscular  system,  through  which  the  framework 
and  its  appendages  are  moved  ;  next  we  will  take 
up  the  digestive  system,  the  province  of  which  is 
to  prepare  crude  nutriment  for  the  insect ;  the 
further  preparation  of  this  nutriment  by  oxygen- 
ation  requires  that  we  should  follow  with  the  res- 
piratory system  ;  and  the  distribution  of  the 
nutriment  over  the  body  by  the  circulatory  sys- 
tem completes  the  circuit  of  the  relation  of  food 
to  the  creature  ;  but  whether  the  natural  action 
of  these  systems  be  voluntary,  as  in  the  first  men- 
tioned, partly  voluntary  and  partly  involuntary, 
as  in  the  second,  or  wholly  involuntary,  as  in  the 
last  two,  they  all  require  to  be  brought  into  rela- 
tion to  the  will  of  the  animal,  or  their  vital  action 
ceases  ;  we  therefore  consider  next  the  nervous 


78  INTERNAL    ORGANS. 

system,  the  seat  of  volition  and  sensation.  In 
discussing  the  earlier  stages  of  the  insect,  we  shall 
next  take  up  the  glandular  or  secretory  system, 
since  its  sole  independent  representative  is  the 
organ  which  serves  to  secrete  silk,  by  means  of 
which  the  caterpillar  is  able  to  walk  where  it 
needs  to  procure  nourishment.  These  are  all  the 
systems  which  have  to  do  simply  with  the  life  of 
the  individual,  but  there  is  still  another,  the  re- 
productive, which  must  take  the  highest  place  as 
related  to  the  life  of  the  species  ;  in  tfye  caterpil- 
lar this  remains  in  an  embryonic  condition,  a  con- 
dition of  preparation  for  future  development ; 
and  finally  we  shall  consider  briefly  the  cellular 
system,  which  is  almost  entirely  confined  to  the 
larval  stage  and  is  intimately  related  to  all  the 
other  systems. 

The  celebrated  Lyonet  counted  more  than  four 
thousand  distinct  muscles  in  a  single  caterpillar, 
but  we  will  admire  his  wonderful  patience  only 
at  a  distance,  and  merely  remark  that  the  mus- 
cular system  of  caterpillars  consists  almost  en- 
tirely of  flat  ribbons,  made  up  of  simple  muscular 
fibre.  The  head,  however,  with  its  numerous 
movable  organs,  forms  a  partial  exception,  for  it 
is  mostly  filled  with  conical  muscular  bundles, 
lying  in  a  compact  mass  side  by  side,  with  their 
smaller  ends  attached  to  the  mandibles  by  means 
of  a  tendinous  cord  in  which  they  all  terminate, 


INTERNAL   ORGANS.  79 

and  their  base  to  the  walls  of  the  head,  especially 
the  posterior  portion,  which  is  quite  crowded  with 
them  ;  these  muscles  serve  to  draw  the  jaws  to- 
gether ;  and  since  most  of  a  caterpillar's  time  is 
spent  in  feeding,  their  monopoly  of  the  head- 
cavity  is  explained.  In  the  body,  the  riband- 
like  character  of  the  muscles  is  fully  developed, 
but  the  continuity  of  the  ribands  is  constantly 
broken,  for  no  one  muscle  ever  crosses  more  than 
two  contiguous  segments  ;  generally  they  pass 
from  the  hinder  end  of  one  to  the  hinder  end  of 
the  next ;  this  accounts  for  the  vast  number 
counted  by  Lyonet,  and  is  incident  to  the  jointed 
character  of  the  body,  which,  as  we  have  said,  lies 
at  the  very  foundation  of  its  structure.  These  mus- 
cles may  be  divided  into  three  classes — longitu- 
dinal, oblique,  and  transverse  ;  the  longitudinal 
bands  are  made  up  of  short  muscles,  each  a  seg- 
ment in  length,  lying  end  to  end,  so  as  to  give  the 
effect  of  long  ribands,  extending  the  whole  length 
of  the  body  ;  there  are  several  such  bands,  each 
of  considerable  width,  and  they  form  the  inner 
wall  of  the  body.  Just  beneath  them  lie  the 
oblique  muscles,  which  always  extend  from  the 
hinder  end  of  one  segment  to  the  hinder  end  of 
the  next,  and  are  found  mostly  upon  the  sides. 
The  transverse  muscles  lie  next  the  skin,  are 
mostly  confined  to  the  sides,  and  those  of  one 
segment  are  entirely  independent  of  those  of  any 


80  'INTERNAL    ORGANS. 

other  ;  these  are  brought  into  use  principally  at 
the  time  of  moulting.  In  the  legs  and  prolegs 
the  walls  are  coated  with  short  muscular  ribands, 
uniting  the  hinder  portions  of  contiguous  joints, 
a  miniature  of  the  longitudinal  muscles  of  the 
body  ;  but  besides  these,  a  tendinous  cord  runs 
through  the  middle  of  the  true  legs,  attached  at 
one  extremity  to  the  claw,  and  connected  through- 
out with  muscles  running  obliquely  to  the  walls 
of  the  leg. 

The  digestive  system  consists  of  an  alimentary 
canal  with  anterior  and  posterior  appendages  ; 
the  canal  is  a  simple,  cylindrical,  muscular  tube 
extending  in  a  straight  line  from  one  end  of  the 
body  to  the  other,  enlarging  in  certain  places  and 
contracting  in  others,  so  that  it  may  be  divided 
very  naturally  into  an  oesophagus,  a  stomach, 
and  an  intestine.  The  oesophagus  is  a  simple 
slender  tube,  enlarging  to  a  sort  of  crop  near  the 
middle  of  the  thoracic  joints  ;  the  stomach  is  a 
much  larger  tube,  of  uniform  size,  extending 
nearly  to  the  extremity  of  the  body  and  covered 
with  muscular  threads,  which  run  transversely, 
diagonally,  and  longitudinally  ;  at  about  the  sev- 
enth abdominal  segment  this  tube  suddenly  con- 
tracts, and  opens  by  a  slender  orifice  to  the  intes- 
tine, the  anterior  half  of  which  is  tightly  wrapped 
in  strong  muscular  fibre,  running  in  various  direc- 
tions, so  as  to  mould  the  interior  walls  into  prom- 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  81 

inent  longitudinal  ridges  ;  while  the  posterior 
half,  or  colon,  is  smoother  and  less  muscular 
within  [Fig.  78]. 

The  anterior  appendages  to  the  intestinal  canal 
are  a  pair  of  salivary  glands,  little  white  threads 
having  their  origin  near  the  commencement  of  the 
oesophagus,  and  running  along  this  nearly  to 
the  stomach.  The  posterior  appendages  are  a 
pair  of  malpighian  vessels,  also  composed  of  ex- 
ceedingly long  slender  threads  ;  they  originate  on 
each  side  of  the  intestine,  and  Very  soon  subdivide 
into  three  tortuous  branches,  which  pass  forward 
and  backward  along  the  walls  of  the  stomach,  and 
linally,  returning  to  the  point  from  which  they 
started,  cover  the  intestine  with  a  most  intricate 
mass  of  convoluted  threads. 

The  respiratory  system  consists  of  a  series  of 
air- tubes  ramifying  indefinitely,  each  set  of  which 
originates  in  a  single  trunk,  opening  from  one  of 
the  numerous  spiracles  or  breathing  pores  with 
which  we  have  found  the  insect  provided  ;  close 
to  the  origin  of  this  trunk  a  large  air-canal  runs 
along  the  sides  of  the  body,  connecting  all  the 
trunks  of  one  side,  while  other  shoots  originate 
from  the  canal  itself ;  and,  indeed,  as  it  passes 
through  the  second  and  third  thoracic  segments, 
which,  as  already  stated,  possess  no  spiracles, 
this  canal  emits  large  branching  trunks  just  like 
those  of  the  other  segments,  directly  opposite  the 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  83 

spots  where  one  would  look  for  spiracles  ;  it  even 
sends  a  small  tube  from  opposite  the  base  of  each 
trunk  to  the  point  where  the  neighboring  spiracles 
should  be,  which,  however,  disappears  with  the 
growth  of  the  animal.  Indeed,  we  may  reason- 
ably believe  that  in  the  original  form  of  the  larva 
it  possessed  complete  breathing  organs  upon  these 
segments,  since  they  differ  from  the  succeed- 
ing segments  only  in  the  want  of  spiracles  and  in 
the  slightly  smaller  size  of  the  tracheal  mass,  and 
of  the  exceedingly  short  tube  which  connects  it 
with  the  spiracles. 

These  air  tubes  ramify  and  subdivide  infinitely  ; 
a  great  many  of  them  impinge  upon  the  stomach 
and  encircle  it  in  their  grasp,  serving  in  fact  as 
its  support ;  others  penetrate  all  parts  of  the 
muscular  mass,  embrace  every  organ  and  track 
along  every  thread  of  nerve  or  fibre  ;  those  from 
the  first  segment  behind  the  head,  after  first  unit- 
ing with  each  other  so  as  to  make  a  perfect  com- 
munication between  the  tracheae  of  the  two  sides 
of  the  body,  send  powerful  branches  from  the 
point  of  union  into  every  part  of  the  head,  where 
the  minute  subdivisions  pass  into  the  furthermost 
joints  of  the  antennae,  or  into  the  jaws,  while 
every  muscle  finds  one  for  its  nearest  neighbor. 

It  is  not,  however,  until  we  come  to  consider 
the  circulatory  system  that  we  can  fully  under- 
stand the  meaning  of  this  endless  ramification  of 


84  IXTltRNAL    ORGANS. 

the  tracheae,  foffit  almost  forms  an  integral  part 
of  that  system.  V  The  centre  of  circulation  is  wha,t 
is  known  as  the  dorsal  vessel,  a  straight  tube 
lying  along  the  back  directly  beneath  the  skin. 
This  can  often  be  seen  through  the  transparent 
skin,  but  on  dissection  it  is  very  difficult  to  recog- 
nize its  true  structure,  so  excessively  delicate  and 
vague  are  its  bounding  walls  ;  it  appears  more 
like  a  passage-way  between  other  bodies  than  as 
a  distinct  vessel ;  and  indeed  it  is  often  only  by 
tracing  its  development  up  to  the  perfect  insect 
that  its  actual  structure  can  be  clearly  deter- 
mined. The  dorsal  vessel  is  open  posteriorly  and 
is  also  furnished  along  its  sides  with  values  open- 
ing inward  and  directed  forward  ;  the  alternate 
contraction  and  expansion  of  the  vessel  forces  the 
fluids  of  the  body  through  these  openings  and 
along  the  canal  toward  the  head  ;  here  the  vessel 
becomes  very  slender,  with  more  distinct  walls, 
but  at  the  extreme  front  of  the  head;  near  the 
base  of  the  oesophagus,  it  terminates,  and  the 
fluids  enter  the  general  cavity  of  the  body  to  flow 
gently  to  the  opposite  extremity,  and  there  to  be 
pumped  again  into  the  dorsal  vessel. 

To  understand,  however,  how  oxygenation  is 
effected,  we  must  glance  once  more  at  the  trachea! 
tubes.  These  are  really  involutions  of  the  exter- 
nal integument  of  the  insect ;  the  outer  chitinous 
coat  (now  become  the  interior  lining)  is  curiously 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  85 

modified,  however,  to  form  a  continuous,  closely 
coiled,  spiral  thread,  making  an  elastic  cylinder  ; 
this  does  not  continue  throughout  the  entire 
trachea,  but  disappears  when  the  finer  ramifica- 
tions are  reached,  leaving  only  the  softer  epider- 
mal integuments  ;  these  apical  portions  of  the 
trachea!  vessels,  as  has  been  said,  are  found  every- 
where, piercing  the  fatty  lobules,  clasping  all  the 
interior  organs,  tracking  along  every  nerve  and 
muscular  fibre,  penetrating  every  tissue,  and  ter- 
minating in  a  mesh- work  of  interlacing  branches, 
their  surfaces  everywhere  bathed  in  the  fluids 
which  fill  the  body  cavity  and  flow  gently  from 
head  to  tail  by  the  pulsatory  action  of  the  dorsal 
vessel.  Oxygenation,  then,  is  effected  by  the  in- 
terchange of  gases  through  the  delicate  mem- 
branes investing  the  ultimate  tracheal  branches, 
and  when  effected  the  purified  fluids  are  at  hand 
to  build  up  the  tissues  of  the  body,  and  have  not 
to  be  forced  to  the  needed  spot  by  arteries. 

The  foundation  of  the  nervous  system  of  cater- 
pillars is  a  series  of  minute  horizontal  disks  or  gan- 
glia lying  on  the  floor  of  the  body  cavity  along 
the  middle  line,  and  connected  with  one  another 
by  a  pair  of  slender  cords,  lying  side  by  side  ;  as 
this  series  of  disks  and  connecting  cords  enters 
the  head,  it  forms  a  ganglion  just  beneath  the 
oesophagus,  beyond  which  the  cords  embrace  the 
oesophagus,  and  again  unite  above  in  a  pair  of 


86  INTERNAL    ORGANS. 

large  globular  lobes,  which  constitute  the  brain  ; 
in  front  of  these  are  one  or  two  other  exceeding- 
ly minute  disks,  similarly  connected,  called  the 
frontal  ganglia.  From  either  side  of  the  brain 
three  principal  nervous  cords  are  emitted,  one  to 
the  ocelli,  one  to  the  antennae,  and  one  to  the  base 
of  the  tendinous  cord  which  connects  the  princi- 
pal muscles  of  the  head  with  the  mandibles  ;  the 
one  passing  to  the  ocelli  is  the  largest,  tapers 
until  it  approaches  them,  and  then  expands  over 
a  broad  area  inclosing  them  all. 

Theoretically  there  is  one  ganglion  to  each  seg- 
ment of  the  body  ;  but  when  we  reach  the  seventh 
abdominal  segment  there  are  two,  one  close  behind 
the  other,  and  in  the  succeeding  segments  none 
at  all ;  the  hinder  and  slightly  larger  one  in  fact- 
represents  the  combined  ganglia  of  the  posterior 
segments,  and  from  it  the  nervous  threads  pass  to 
the  very  extremity  of  the  body.  At  the  sides  of 
all  the  ganglia,  and  from  the  nervous  cord  just  in 
advance  of  each  ganglion,  lateral  threads  are  emit- 
ted and  pass  outward  toward  the  walls  of  the 
body,  branching  in  every  direction,  covering  each 
organ  and  muscle  with  filaments  of  nervous  tis- 
sue ;  there  are  two  of  these  principal  branching 
threads  on  either  side  of  each  ganglion,  the  an- 
terior generally  feeding  the  upper  and  the  pos- 
terior the  lower  half  of  the  body. 

The  only  organs  of  special  secretion  in  cater- 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  87 

pillars  are  the  silk- vessels  ;  these  have  a  distinct 
outlet  on  the  under  lip,  which  becomes  modified 
to  form  a  spinneret ;  from  this  point  a  delicate 
thread  runs  along  the  oesophagus  to  the  middle 
or  end  of  the  thoracic  part  of  the  body  ;  there  it 
thickens  to  form  the  secreting  vessel,  a  slender 
flattened  riband,  running  in  the  same  direction 
along  the  sides  of  the  alimentary  canal  to  about  the 
middle  of  the  stomach,  when  it  turns  a  little  upon 
its  course,  again  reverses  its  direction,  and  pass- 
ing above  the  stomach,  continues  to  its  extremity. 

Finally  the  reproductive  system,  which  relates 
to  the  species  rather  than  to  the  individual,  is  of 
extreme  simplicity  ;  it  consists  mainly  of  a  pair 
of  very  minute  bodies,  either  a  chambered  gland 
or  a  consolidated  bunch  of  tubes,  forming  a  sort 
of  sac ;  these  bodies  are  situated  on  either  side 
of  the  fifth  abdominal  segment ;  from  each  of 
them  proceeds  a  thread  which  runs  back  a  little 
way,  and  then  down  and  back  along  the  sides  of 
the  body  until  it  has  nearly  reached  the  middle 
line  beneath,  when  it  passes  through  a  special 
band  of  muscle,  and,  side  by  side  with  its  mate, 
terminates  in  a  common  blind  sac,  situated  just 
beneath  the  extremity  of  the  intestinal  canal. 

The  nutriment  received  into  the  body  is  not  all 
absorbed  by  the  formation  and  continual  repair  of 
organs  and  muscular  tissue  ;  and  when  the  sup- 
ply is  greater  than  the  need,  the  residue  is  stored 


88  INTERNAL   ORGANS. 

in  cellular  tissue,  to  be  used  at  a  fixed  epoch  of 
the  caterpillar's  life,  when  its  continued  existence 
depends  upon  this  reserve  force.  On  opening  the 
body,  we  find  a  great  quantity  of  fatty  matter,  in 
continuous  layers  of  convoluted  lobules,  strapped 
down  by  the  muscles  between  which  it  has  pene- 
trated, enwrapping  the  whole  intestinal  canal, 
and  filling  every  space  that  can  be  found  between 
the  different  organs  of  the  body. 

This  explains  the  voracity  of  the  caterpillar, 
and  shows  that  the  main  end  of  its  existence  is  to 
gormandize  and  grow  ;  examining  its  interior,  we 
find  that  the  muscles  occupy  hardly  more  space 
than  twice  the  thickness  of  the  skin  to  which  they 
are  attached  ;  and  their  very  object  is  to  move  the 
creature  to  a  feeding  spot  or  remove  the  old  in- 
tegument to  admit  of  a  larger  growth  and  a  greater 
capacity  for  food  ;  those  of  the  head  are  almost 
exclusively  attached  to  the  jaws.  The  general 
cavity  of  the  body  is  mostly  occupied  by  the  ali- 
mentary canal  and  its  appendages,  the  glands  and 
nerves  and  even  the  tracheae  really  requiring  an 
insignificant  amount  of  space  ;  and  whatever  is 
not  occupied  by  these  organs,  necessary  to  the 
assimilation  of  food,  is  choked  up  with  the  fatty 
masses  embedded  in  the  cellular  tissue. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

TRANSFORMATIONS   OF    THE   INTERNAL   ORGANS. 

LET  ns  now  look  at  the  changes  which  the  in- 
ternal parts  undergo,  as  the  caterpillar  passes 
through  the  chrysalis  to  the  imago  state. 

To  begin  with  the  muscular  system,  we  find  the 
principal  differences  between  the  caterpillar  and 
imago  to  exist  in  the  head  and  thorax  ;  in  the 
abdomen  the  muscles  moving  the  different  joints 
are  much  the  same,  although  greatly  reduced  in 
size  ;  the  interior  of  the  head,  however,  presents 
a  very  different  appearance  ;  instead  of  being 
mainly  occupied  by  muscles  moving  the  horny 
jaws,  the  space  is  nearly  all  given  to  brain  and 
optic  nerve,  and  what  few  muscles  there  are  serve 
simply  to  move  the  antennae,  the  tongue,  and  the 
labial  palpi,  and  to  open  and  close  the  pharyngeal 
sac  ;  these  have  been  developed  at  the  expense  of 
the  muscles  of  the  mandibles,  which,  from  occu- 
pying nearly  the  whole  head,  have  almost  abso- 
lutely disappeared,  since  the  mandibles  are  now 
immovably  soldered  to  the  frame-work  of  the 
head.  The  thorax  is  greatly  swollen  and  the 
longitudinal  muscles,  instead  of  merely  lining  the 


00  TRANSFORMATIONS  OF   THE 

skin,  have  increased  so  as  to  fill  more  than  half  of 
the  interior  ;  the  oblique  muscles  occupy  almost 
all  the  rest,  and  both  sets  retain  nearly  the  same 
direction  as  in  the  larva.  These  muscular  bun- 
dles, through  which  the  alimentary  canal,  the 
dorsal  vessel,  and  the  nervous  cord  seem  now 
scarcely  able  to  find  passage,  are  the  muscles  of 
flight ;  and  yet  they  touch  neither  the  wings  nor 
their  attachments.  The  flight  of  butterflies  is 
mainly  effected  simply  by  changes  in  the  form  of 
the  thorax,  produced  by  the  contraction  of  one  or 
the  other  set  of  muscles ;  the  longitudinal  mus- 
cles, which  are  the  more  voluminous,  serving  to 
shorten  and  elevate  the  thorax,  and  so  depress  the 
wings,  while  the  oblique  muscles  serve  to  lengthen 
and  depress  the  thorax  and  elevate  the  wings. 
The  changes  that  have  occurred  in  the  muscular 
system  are  due  to  degeneration  and  reorganization 
during  pupal  life  ;  even  where,  as  in  the  longitu- 
dinal muscles  of  the  thorax,  the  direction  is  the 
same,  it  should  be  noticed  that  they  now  reach 
across  the  second  and  third  thoracic  segments 
without  interruption,  whereas  in  the  caterpillar 
they  were  formed  of  distinct  muscles,  each  of 
which  crossed  only  a  single  segment,  though  with 
contiguous  ends. 

Transformations  have  also  occurred  in  the 
digestive  system,  and  these  changes  commence  in 
the  very  earliest  stages  of  pupal  life  and  continue 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  91 

throughout  that  period ;  there  is  no  sign  what- 
ever of  any  approaching  change,  so  long  as  the 
caterpillar  continues  to  feed ;  but  when  it  has 
attained  maturity  in  this  stage,  the  entire  con- 
tents of  the  alimentary  canal  are  voided,  and  from 
this  moment  the  form  and  relations  of  the  parts 
begin  to  change  and  new  parts  arise  ;  first,  the 
whole  canal  becomes  more  slender,  a  natural  re- 
sult of  its  emptiness  ;  then  the  oesophagus  and 
intestine  lengthen,  at  the  expense  of  the  stomach, 
which  tapers  at  either  end  ;  next,  the  oesophagus 
swells  -just  at  the  entrance  of  the  stomach,  and 
the  colon,  which  has  retained  a  globular  form 
while  the  intestine  grew  slender,  begins  to  turn  a 
little  from  a  direct  course  ;  the  malpighian  vessels, 
too,  formerly  attached  to  the  middle  of  the  intes- 
tine, often  begin  to  approach  the  extremity  of  the 
stomach  ;  and  when  they  have  finally  reached  it, 
perhaps  only  a  week  after  the  caterpillar  has 
changed  to  chrysalis,  the  little  swelling  at  the  end 
of  the  oesophagus  has  grown  to  a  bladder  with  a 
minute  orifice,  and  is  destined  to  be  at  least  half 
as  large  as  the  stomach  itself  upon  which  it  lies  ; 
at  the  same  time,  the  colon  has  grown  asym- 
metrical and  developed  a  coecum  upon  one  side. 
After  this,  the  intestine  begins  to  lengthen  and 
grow  tortuous,  until,  at  last,  the  alimentary  tract  is 
often  twice  as  long  as  the  body.  The  little  blad- 
der at  the  end  of  the  oesophagus  has  been  consid- 


92  TRANSFORMATIONS   OF    THE 

ered  by  most  authors  as  a  pumping  stomach,  by 
the  exhaustion  of  which  the  fluids  pass  up  the 
spiral  tongue  ;  but  we  have  found  that  other  organs 
exist  sufficient  for  this  purpose,  and  it  seems  more 
probable  that  it  is  either  a  simple  air  vesicle, 
rendering  the  insect  more  buoyant,  or  a  food  res- 
ervoir, wherein  to  store  and  digest  at  leisure  the 
honeyed  sweets  obtained  on  a  sunny  day.  The 
salivary  glands  and  malpighian  vessels  do  not 
greatly  change  in  character  during  the  growth  of 
the  insect  [Pig.  79,  on  page  82]. 

The  respiratory  and  circulatory  systems  differ 
so  little  in  the  larval  and  perfect  stages  of  butter- 
flies that  it  is  not  worth  while  to  dwell  upon 
them.  It  may  simply  be  remarked  with  refer- 
ence to  the  latter  that  the  dorsal  vessel  has  (1)  be- 
come less  vague,  with  well-defined  vascular  walls 
and  regular  and  considerable  periodic  enlarge- 
ments ;  and  that  (2)  in  the  thorax  it  does  not  fol- 
low the  superior  wall  of  the  body  throughout,  but 
near  the  middle,  where  it  enlarges  considerably,  it 
returns  upon  itself,  plunging  downward  and  back- 
ward through  the  mass  of  muscles  which  fill  the 
chest  until  it  has  nearly  gained  the  point  at  which 
it  entered  the  thorax  ;  when  it  turns  once  more 
toward  the  head  and  passes  to  it  in  a  nearly 
straight  course. 

The  nervous  system  has  greatly  altered,  al- 
though its  general  course  and  structure  remain 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  93 

the  same.  Instead  of  being  almost  equally  dis- 
tributed in  every  segment  of  the  body,  the  greater 
proportion  of  it  is  removed  forward  and  concen- 
trated in  the  head  and  thorax  ;  the  principal 
changes  are  the  following :  the  brain  increases 
steadily  in  size,  the  little  ganglion  beneath  the 
oesophagus  approaches  it  as  closely  as  the  atten- 
uating oesophagus  allows,  the  cords  which  con- 
nect it  with  the  first  body -ganglion  shorten,  then 
broaden  so  as  to  obliterate  the  former,  and  finally 
lengthen  so  as  to  separate  the  two  by  more  than 
their  f ormer  distance  ;  the  first  and  second  ganglia 
of  the  body  approach  each  other  until  they  fair- 
ly melt  in  one,  the  connecting  cords  becoming 
more  and  more  divergent  and  then  approximat- 
ing until  they,  too,  merge  in  the  general  mass ; 
the  third  and  fourth,  that  is,  the  last  thoracic 
and  first  abdominal  ganglia,  act  in  a  similar  way 
toward  each  other,  and  at  the  same  time  approach 
the  united  first  and  second  until  they  are  sepa- 
rated only  by  short  and  thick  commissures,  and 
together  form  a  thoracic  mass,  nearly  equal  to 
that  of  the  head  ;  it  will  be  noticed  that  one  of 
the  abdominal  ganglia  has,  therefore,  entered  the 
thorax.  With  the  shortening  body  of  the  insect, 
the  ganglia  behind  in  like  manner  approach  each 
other,  the  uniting  cords  not  diverging  but  becom- 
ing sinuate,  and  regaining  their  former  straight- 
ness  only  after  most  of  the  changes  incident  to 


TRANSFORMATIONS   OF    THE 

this  stage  of  the  animal's  life  are  consummated  ; 
the  fifth  and  sixth  ganglia  gradually  disappear,  so 
that  a  long  distance  now  intervenes  between  the 
thoracic  and  abdominal  ganglia,  and  those  of  the 
latter  region  are  no  longer  placed  in  the  respect- 
ive segments  in  which  they  first  appeared.  Many 
of  the  nervous  threads  have  in  like  manner  become 
amalgamated,  and  in  all  cases  they  have  been 
transported  with  the  ganglia  from  which  they  orig- 
inated, or  they  issue  from  the  main  nervous  cord 
at  the  points  where  the  ganglia  have  vanished. 

But  it  is  in  the  reproductive  system  that  the 
greatest  transitions  occur.  The  little  sac  and 
thread  on  either  side  of  the  body,  without  outlet, 
and  only  to  be  traced  with  difficulty  in  the  cater- 
pillar, have  come  to  fill  nearly  the  entire  ab- 
dominal cavity  of  the  perfect  insect.  In  one  sex, 
the  little  sacs  first  approach  each  other  upon  the 
back  and  then  increase  in  size  and  amalgamate  in 
one  spherical  body  ;  simultaneously  with  its  in- 
crease in  size,  the  threads  enlarge  and  lengthen, 
and  with  their  inextricable  convolutions  fill  the 
whole  abdomen,  and  find  their  outlet  next  that  of 
the  alimentary  canal.  In  the  other  sex,  the  little 
tubes  of  which  the  sac  is  composed  separate  ex- 
cepting at  the  tip,  increase  wonderfully  in  size 
and  length,  coil  up  and  become  distended  with 
eggs,  finally  weighting  the  body  to  such  a  degree 
that  the  butterfly  flies  with  difficulty  ;  while  the 


INTERNAL    ORGANS.  95 

thread  has  enlarged  and  here  and  there  developed 
special  vessels,  just  as  we  have  seen  in  the  aliment- 
ary canal ;  so  that  at  last  it  would  scarcely  seem 
possible  that  so  complicated  a  system  could  have 
arisen  from  a  simple  thread. 

Finally,  the  silk  vessels  of  the  caterpillar  have 
entirely  vanished  before  half  the  pupal  stage  is 
past,  and  the  immense  material  stored  in  the  cel- 
lular system  has  become  absorbed  by  the  require- 
ments of  the  rapidly  growing  organs  until  scarcely 
a  trace  is  left.  Thus  we  see  that  revolutions  have 
occurred  within  the  body  quite  as  great  as  those 
of  the  external  envelope,  and  these  changes  have 
mostly  transpired  during  the  earlier  stages  of  pupal 
life,  or  in  the  day  or  two  which  precede  and  fol- 
low the  absolute  change  from  larva  to  chrysalis. 

There  are  certain  organs  of  the  butterfly  which, 
as  we  have  said,  are  not  mere  alterations  or  out- 
growths of  parts  previously  exist- 
ing, but  new  structures,  each  of 
which  has  its  own  proper  develop- 
ment ;  we  will  briefly  consider  the 
most  interesting  of  these,  the  wings. 

If  we  were  to  open  a  fully  grown 
caterpillar,  we  should  discover  [Fig. 
80]  upon  either  side  of  the  last  two  thoracic  seg- 
ments a  lustrous,   translucent,    circular  pad,  at- 
tached to  the  inner  walls  of  the  body  and  direct- 
ed upward  ;  these  pads  closely  resemble  the  flakes 


96  IATTERNAL    ORGANS. 

of  fat  in  the  same  vicinity,  and,  like  them,  are 
permeated  by  the  minuter  extremities  of  tracheal 
vessels  ;  their  point  of  attachment  is  just  above 
and  slightly  in  advance  of  the  spot  where  the  spi- 
racle should  be  ;  they  are  fed  by  delicate  nerves 
and  by  tracheal  vessels,  from  the  latter  of  which 
the  permeating  threads  arise ;  but  they  do  not 
originate,  as  Landois  asserts,  from  the  longitudi- 
nal tracheae  themselves,  but  from  the  hypoderm  or 
inner  integument  of  the  creature,  as  Lyonet 
described  it  more  than  a  century  ago,  Herold  sixty 
years  since,  and  Dewitz,  Ganin,  Graber,  and 
others  have  latterly  clearly  shown.  These  pads, 
which  really  originate  in  the  earliest  stage  of  the 
larva,  but  are  not  then  readily  detected,  are  com- 
pressed folds  of  the  hypoderm,  which  do  not  pro- 
trude externally  like  the  other  appendages  of  the 
body,  because  they  form  infolded  pockets  beneath 
the  outer  chitinous  covering  of  the  caterpillar  ; 
they  resemble  the  half  reversed  finger  of  a  glove, 
so  withdrawn  that  the  tip  of  the  finger  is  on  a  level 
with  the  base.  Shortly  before  pupation,  the  tip 
begins  to  push  its  way  outward  beneath  the  chi- 
tinous skin,  a  condition  indicated  by  the  swollen 
sides  of  the  caterpillar  at  that  point,  so  as  to  be- 
come actually  rather  than  potentially  external 
appendages  of  the  hypoderm  ;  and  when  the 
larval  skin  is  removed  by  pupation,  they  are  for 
the  first  time  exposed  to  the  eye. 


CHAPTEK  VII. 

HABITS. 

IN  the  preceding  chapters  we  have  discussed  the 
external  frame- work  and  the  internal  organization 
of  butterflies.  We  now  leave  these  rather  dry 
details,  and  proceed  to  a  more  interesting  topic, 
the  Life  of  butterflies.  Here,  as  in  the  lives  of 
men,  we  shall  find  that  "  all  the  world's  a  stage," 
and  in  this  moving  drama  of  life  shall  discern 
the  same  struggles  for  existence,  the  same  survival 
of  the  fittest,  although  not  the  exhibition  of  such 
varied  passions,  as  in  human  history.  We  shall 
see  how  the  diverse  relations  of  butterflies  to 
their  environment  are  proofs  of  the  moulding 
power  of  these  unseen  forces.  That  this  should 
be  so  is  hardly  surprising  when  we  consider  that 
they  are  openly  exposed  to  all  the  varied  influ- 
ences of  their  surroundings  under  four  entirely 
different  structural  forms  ;  and  that  although 
they  are  active  in  only  two  of  these,  yet  they 
then  differ  so  widely  in  both  life  and  organiza- 
tion that,  if  the  relation  between  them  had  never 
been  traced,  it  could  never  have  been  surmised. 
So  far,  therefore,  as  their  lives  are  concerned,  we 
must  treat  the  caterpillar  and  the  butterfly  much 


98 


HABITS. 


as  if  they  were  beings  as  distinct  as  they  appear  ; 
indeed,  the  only  connection  one  has  with  the 
other  seems  to  be  in  the  care  which  the  mother 
butterfly  exercises  in  laying  the  eggs  from  which 
the  caterpillar  is  one  day  to  creep  ;  and  since  in 
most  instances  this  stands  in  direct  relation  to  the 
life  of  the  caterpillar,  we  will  commence  our 
account  with  this  point,  and  illustrate  it,  as  we 
shall  all  our  future  discussions,  mainly  from  the 
butterflies  of  our  Northern  States. 

The  butterfly  generally  lays  her  eggs  singly, 
although  some  species  deposit  in  small  clusters 
and  others  again  in  great  masses.  These  eggs  are 
laid  on  the  food -plant  of  the  caterpillar,  unless 
indeed  the  caterpillar  feeds  on  grasses  or  other 
common  herbage,  when  the  eggs  are 
laid  indifferently  upon  objects  near 
the  ground,  or,  as  I  believe,  in  one 
instance  (the  White  Mountain  but- 
terfly, Oeneis  semidea),  are  dropped 
loosely  upon  the  soil  in  the  midst 
of  the  herbage.  The  Camberwell 
Beauty  (Papilio  Antiopa)  chooses 
in  the  spring-time  the  terminal 
shoot  of  a  willow  or  elm,  and,  perch- 
ing head  downward,  with  closed 
wings,  deposits  a  dozen  or  more  pale  yellow  ribbed 
eggs  in  a  little  girdle  around  the  twig,  next  the 
petiole  of  the  springing  leaf  [Fig.  81].  The 


FIG.  81  —Clusters 
of  eggs  of  Papilio 
Antiopa,  encir- 
cling the  twig  of 
an  elm  ;  X  2. 


HABITS. 


99 


Baltimore  (Euphydryas  Phaeton)  searches  the 
swamps  for  the  snake-head,  and  lays  upon  the 
under  surface  of  the  broad 
leaf  a  mass  of  hundreds  of 
eggs  [see  Fig.  15],  piled  in 
several  layers.  Our  Nettle 
Tortoise-shell  (Aglais  Mil- 
berti)  lays  its  eggs  upon  the 
under  surface  of  the  leaves 
of  nettles,  generally  be- 
tween the  principal  veins, 
but  often  covering  some  of 
these,  in  large,  irregular, 
partly  open  patches,  in 
which  the  eggs  are  rarely 
if  ever  piled  upon  one  an- 
other [Fig.  82]  ;  sometimes 
several  patches  may  be 
found  upon  the  same  leaf.  The  Blue  Swallow- 
tail (Laertias  Philenor),  partial  to 
aristolochia,  fastens  on  that  plant 
and  its  allies  some  six  or  eight  eggs 
side  by  side  in  two  or  three  short 
rows  ;  and  I  have  twice  found  upon 
the  under  surface  of  nettle-leaves  a 
hanging  column  of  from  three  to  nine 
glistening  eggs  of  the  Orange  Com- 
ma (Polygonia  Comma)  placed  end  to  end  [Fig. 
83].  The  Banded  Purple  (Basilarchia  Arthemis) 


FIG.  82.— Clusters  of  eggs  of 
Aglais  Milberti,  on  the  under  side 
of  a  nettle-leaf,  nat.  size. 


FIG.  83.— Clusters 
of  eggs  of  Poly- 
gonia  Comma,  on 
the 
of  s 
X3. 


100  HABITS. 

of  the  hilly  parts  of  New  England  prefers  the 
cherry  birch,  and  glues  a  single  egg  upon  the 
upper  surface  of  the  leaf  -  at  its  extreme  tip. 
Similar  although  even  more  extraordinary  is 
the  place  chosen  by  its  cousin,  the  Red-spotted 
Purple  (Basilarchia  Astyanax),  which  selects 
the  extreme  tip  of  the  trembling  aspen-leaf, 
which  tapers  delicately  to  a  very  fine  point ;  in 
both  these  cases,  the  insect  usually  deposits 
but  one  egg  on  a  tree.  The  Tiger  Swallow-tail 
(Jasoniades  Glaucus)  [see  Fig.  6]  shows  sim- 
ilar care  with  birches  ;  while  the  Gray-veined 
White  (Pieris  oleracea)  [see  Fig.  10]  and  the  im- 
ported cabbage  butterfly  (Pieris  rapae)  dot  the  sur- 
face of  our  turnips  and  cabbages  with  pyramidal 
eggs.  In  all  these  cases,  the  caterpillar  feeds 
upon  the  plant  which  the  parent  has  selected  ; 
yet  she  seldom  can  see,  certainly  never  has  been 
known  by  the  slightest  sign  to  recognize,  the 
young  for  whose  sustenance  she  is  at  such  pains 
to  provide.  This  is  one  of  the  wonders  and  per- 
plexities of  instinctive  action.  Let  us  take,  for 
example,  the  Viceroy  (Basilarchia  Archippus), 
which  during  its  butterfly  life  has  never  tasted, 
can  by  no  possibility  ever  taste,  of  willow  or  pop- 
lar ;  that  it  should  choose  just  these  trees  neces- 
sary for  the  food  of  progeny  it  is  never  to  see 
defies  our  powers  of  explanation  on  any  hypo- 
thesis which  leaves  all  to  blind  forces. 


HABITS.  101 

The  growth  of  the  embryo  within  the  egg  is 
rapid,  so  that  it  sometimes  hatches  in  a  few  days, 
although  some  eggs  endure  throughout  a  winter 
and  hatch  in  the  spring.  Each,  however,  has  its 
appointed  time  within  very  narrow  limits  ;  and 
when  the  time  of  birth  arrives,  the  little  prisoner 
has  but  to  move  his  jaws,  already  in  contact  with 
the  egg-shell,  to  bite  a  hole  through  it  for  his 
escape  ;  often  he  bites  a  slit  around  the  summit 
of  the  egg,  and,  pushing  up  the  lid  thus  formed, 
takes  his  departure.  The  taste  he  has  gained  of 
egg-shell  seems  to  allure  him  ;  for,  strange  as  it 
may  seem,  although  placed  by  the  provident  parent 
within  immediate  reach  of  choice  and  succulent 
food,  he  will  not  taste  it  until  he  has  devoured 
the  last  remnant  of  his  prison- walls.  Strange  food 
this  for  a  new-born  babe  !  The  act,  however,  is 
plainly  a  provision  of  nature  by  which  the  tender 
animal  is  rid  of  a  sure  token  to  his  enemies  of  his 
immediate  proximity.  Yet  whence  did  he  learn 
his  lesson,  perched  quite  by  himself,  maybe,  as 
in  the  case  of  the  Viceroy's  caterpillar,  upon  the 
outmost  twig  of  a  poplar,  out  of  sight  of  a  soli- 
tary companion  ?  Is  this  reason  or  instinct  ?  and 
if  instinct,  will  those  who  believe  this  power  to 
be  only  an  accumulated  inheritance  of  ancestral 
wisdom  pray  give  us  a  single  suggestion  of  the 
line  of  descent  by  which  this  lonely,  defenceless 
creature  learned  Ms  art  ? 


102 


HABITS. 


Let  us  follow  the  history  of  the  Viceroy  [Pig. 
84]  a  little  farther.     Born  upon  the  extreme  tip 


FIG.  84.— Basil archia  Archippus,  nat.  size  ;  the  under  surface  of  the  wings  is 
shown  on  the  right  side,  the  upper  on  the  left  (Harris). 

of  a  trembling  leaf,  its  prison- walls  demolished, 
it  begins  to  devour  in  a  curious  manner  the  leaf 
on  which  it  rests  ;  it  nibbles  away 
either  side  of  the  tip, 
leaving  the  midrib  un- 
touched [Figs.  85-87}; 
each  time  it  has  finish- 
ed a  repast,  it  retires  to 
this  midrib  [Fig.  85]  to 
digest  the  meal,  where, 
facing  outward  with 
head  bent  to  the  ground, 
it  rests  immovable  ;  appetite  return- 
ing, it  wheels  about,  hurries  to  its  old  feeding- spot, 
and,  its  meal  finished,  retires  again  to  its  accus- 


FIG.  85.  —  Leaf 
eaten  by  Basilar- 
chia  Archippus, 
with  the  cater- 
pillar  resting  on 
the  bare  midrib 
after  a  meal ;  nat. 
size. 


FIG  86.— Leaf 
eaten  by  caterpil- 
lar of  Basilarchia 
Archippus  ;  n  a  t . 

size. 


HABITS, 


103 


tomed  station  for  a  new  siesta.    A  similar  habit 

has  been  observed  by  Riley  in 

the    young    caterpillar   of    the 

Goat  weed   butterfly,    which    in 

after-life  lives  in  a  nest  formed 

of  a  single  leaf  [see  Fig.   97], 

somewhat    resembling,     on     a 

large  scale,  the  hibernaculum  of 

the    Viceroy ;    it    "  invariably 

commences  feeding  at  the  tip  of 

a  leaf,    stripping  it  down   the 

midrib,   upon    which,    between 

meals,  it  rests  exposed"  [Fig. 

88].     This  is  the  more  remark- 
able because  Riley  states  that 

several  eggs  are  sometimes  laid 
upon  a  single  leaf ; 
in  such  a  case,  the 
caterpillars  must  disperse  on  hatch- 
ing, as  even  two  could  scarcely 
follow  this  mode  of  life  very  con- 
veniently upon  the  same  leaf.  The 
caterpillar  of  the  Viceroy  signifies 
its  displeasure  at  any  disturbance 
by  tossing  the  head  upward,  scrap- 
ing its  jaws  at  the  same  time  upon 
the  leaf ;  when  moving  about,  it 
walks  with  a  palsied  shake  of  the 

whole  body  which  is  ludicrous  to  see.    It  remains 


FIG.  87.— Leaf  of  wil- 
low eaten  by  the  cater- 
pillar of  Basilarchia 
Archippus,  showing  its 
habit  of  leaving  a  little 
lump  of  debris  attached 
by  silk  to  the  midrib  ; 
nat.  size  (Riley). 


FIG.  88.— Young 
caterpillar  of 
Anaea  Andria, 
seated  on  the  ex- 
tremity of  the 
stripped  midrib 
of  a  leaf  of  goat- 
weed.  ;  nat.  size 
(Riley). 


104  HABITS. 

on  this  one  leaf  until  it  is  entirely  devoured  ;  then 
it  betakes  itself  to  the  next  leaf  upon  the  twig, 
and  so  on  in  succession  until  the  stem  is  bare,  by 
which  time  it  has  reached  maturity  ;  after  it  has 
left  the  first  leaf,  however,  it  is  by  no  means  so 
particular  to  commence  feeding  upon  the  tip,  but 
cuts  large  pieces  anywhere  and  quite  irregularly, 
biting  through  the  midrib  as  well  as  the  rest  of 
the  leaf,  and  retires  to  the  stem  of  the  twig  to 
digest  its  meal. 

This  caterpillar,  as  well  as  many  others,  lives  a 
solitary  life  ;  but  there  are  those  which  are  more 
or  less  gregarious,  and  they  belong  for  the  most 
part  to  the  higher  groups.  Whenever  the  cater- 
pillars are  strictly  gregarious,  the  eggs  are  invari- 
ably laid  in  clusters  ;  there  are,  however,  some 
butterflies  which  lay  their  eggs  in  small  clusters, 
whose  caterpillars  are  not  properly  gregarious  ; 
yet  all  such  are  closely  related  to  others  whose 
caterpillars  are  gregarious,  so  that  we  find  every 
gradation  from  solitary  to  social.  There  are  also 
some  caterpillars,  like  those  of  our  Baltimore  of 
the  swamps,  which  are  gregarious  in  their  early 
life,  but  afterward  part  company.  In  such  cases, 
the  caterpillar  usually  hibernates,  and  its  social 
life  lasts  throughout  the  autumn  and  winter,  the 
company  dispersing  at  the  renewal  of  activity  in 
the  spring.  Indeed,  in  almost  all  cases,  the  asso- 
ciation is  most  conspicuous  in  early  life,  when  the 


HABITS.  105 

caterpillars  feed  in  rows  upon  the  same  leaf  in 
such  close  proximity  that  it  would  seem  to  inter- 
fere with  convenience.  Sometimes  this  is  the  only 
mark  of  their  social  nature  ;  but  as  all  caterpillars 
spin  more  or  less  silk  in  moving  about,  a  web  of 
greater  or  less  extent  generally  accompanies  a 
colony,  and  in  some  cases  the  community  con- 
structs a  close  structure,  like  that  woven  by  the 
Baltimore  [Fig.  89],  the  caterpillars  of  which  in- 


FIG.  89.—  Euphydryas  Phaeton,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

close  the  whole  tip  of  the  plant  on  which  the  com- 
pany feeds  with  a  dense  web  [Fig.  90],  within 
which  they  retire  to  rest  or  to  moult.  A  Mexican 
butterfly,  allied  to  our  sulphurs,  constructs  a  web, 
first  noticed  by  Hardy,*  which  is  nearly  as  close 
as  parchment.  With  rare  exceptions,  all  butterfly 
caterpillars  feed  upon  the  outside  of  plants  ;  but 
there  are  a  few  which  live  in  the  interior,  and  one 
of  these,  an  Indian  species,  is  known  to  be  social, 

*  Travels  in   the  Interior  of  Mexico.     See  also  Westwood, 
Traus.  Ent.  Soc.  London,  i.,  38  (1834). 


106 


HABITS. 


living  in  numbers  within  the  fruit  of  the  pome- 
granate. * 

The  construction  of  nests  for  concealment  is  not 
confined  to  the  social  caterpillars,  but  extends  to 


FIG.  90.— Web-nest  of    caterpillar  of   Enphydryas  Phaeton,  half  nat.  size. 
(Copied  from  Edwards.) 

a  large  number  of  solitary  species.  I  am  inclined 
to  believe  the  habit  universal  among  the  skippers, 
or  lowest  family  of  butterflies.  Some  of  them 
live  in  the  interior  of  stems  of  living  plants  ; 

*  Trans.  Ent.  Soc.  London,  ii.,  1  (1837). 


HABITS. 


107 


others  in  slight  nests  formed  by  weaving  together 
several  upright  blades  of  grass  ;  others,  an^^^^  £ 
are  generally  some  of  the 
larger  species,  like  the  White 
spotted  Skipper  [Figs.  91- 
93],  draw  several  leaves  to- 
gether just  as  they  grow 
upon  the  plant,  and,  retain- 
ing them  in  the  desired  place 
by  silken  bands,  live  within 
the  leafy  bower.  In  earlier 
life,  these  same  caterpillars, 
as  well  as  the  full-grown 
caterpillars  of  other  species, 
construct  nests  by  folding 
over  a  little  piece  of  leaf, 
and  fastening  the  edge  to  the  opposite  surface 
by  a  few  loose  strands  of  silk  [Fig.  94]  ;  to  effect 
this  they  first  bite  a  little  channel  into  the  leaf 


FIG.  91.— Nest  of  caterpillar 
of  Epargyreus  Tityrus,  nat.  size. 
(After  Riley.) 


FIG.  92.— Caterpillar  of  Epargyreos  Tityrus,  nat.  size.    (After  Riley.) 

at  just  such  a  place  as  to  leave  a  fragment  of  leaf 
neither  too  large  nor  too  small  to  serve  as  a  roof 


108 


HABITS. 


when  they  shall  have  turned  it  over  ;  often  they 
have  to  cut  two  channels  in  order  to  procure  a 
flap  sufficiently  small  for  their 
purposes  ;  and  it  is  curious 
to  watch  one  of  these  tender 
creatures,  just  as  soon  as  it 
has  devoured  its  egg-shell, 
a  tough  oak -leaf,  to  build  for 


FIG.  93.— Chrysalis  of 
Epargyreus  Tityrus,  nat. 
size. 


struggling  with 
itself  a  house. 

The  caterpillar  of  some  of  the 
swallow-tails  always  rests  upon 
the  middle  of  the  upper  sur- 
face of  a  leaf,  upon  the  floor  of 
which  it  has  stretched  a  silken 
carpet,  so  as  to  make  the  edges 
curl  toward  each  other,  and 
thus  form  an  open  nest.  On  one 
rainy  day,  Mr.  L.  Trouvelot,  of 
Cambridge,  noticed  a  caterpil- 
lar of  the  Tiger  Swallow-tail 
on  a  bush  in  his  garden.  "  I 
certainly  thought,"  he  says,* 
"  that  the  invention  of  resting 
in  the  hollow  of  a  curved  leaf 
on  a  rainy  day  was  a  very  poor 
one  ;  for  since  the  bent  leaf  per- 
formed the  office  of  a  gutter,  the  water  must  flow 


FIG.  94  — Nest  of  cater- 
pillar of  Thauaos  Persius, 
nat.  size. 


*  Proc.  Bost.  Soc.  Nat.  Hist.,  xii.,  92  (1869). 


HABITS. 


109 


through  this  channel,  the  larva  be  inundated  and 
inevitably  drowned,  if  the  rain  lasted  but  a  few 
hours.  I  soon  found  that  there  were  more  brains 
in  the  small  head  than  I  had  supposed.  The 
larva  began  to  move  ;  it  spun  some  silk  from  one 


FIG.  95.— Nest  of  caterpillar  of  Vanessa  Atalanta,  formed  of  a  nettle-leaf; 
nat.  size. 

edge  of  the  leaf  to  the  other,  and  by  adding  many 
fibres  to  make  it  strong,  each  new  fibre  shorter 
than  the  preceding,  the  leaf  was  soon  made  to 
curve  more  and  more.  I  then  began  to  under- 
stand what  this  laborious  work  was  for,  and  I 


HO  HABITS. 

thought  that  sometimes  small  people  might  give 
lessons  to  larger  ones.  After  about  an  hour,  the 
larva  ceased  to  work,  a  real  bridge  was  built 
over  the  torrent,  and  upon  it  lay  motionless  and 
out  of  danger  the  little  larva.  Would  you  call 
such  an  act  instinct,"  he  adds,  "  or  would  you 
call  it  reason  ?  If  you  call  it  instinct.  I  would  say 
that  this  instinct  is  very  reasonable. " 

The  caterpillar  of  the  Red  Admiral  (Vanessa 
Atalanta)  constructs  a  somewhat  similar  [Pig.  95] 
though  more  perfect  nest  by  fastening  together 


FIG.  96.— Vanessa  Hantera.  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

the  opposite  edges  of  a  nettle-leal  the  tip  of 
which  it  eats  when  too  lazy  to  go  away  from  home, 
until  there  is  barely  enough  left  for  shelter ;  its 
weight  causes  the  leaf  to  droop,  so  that  the  nest- 
is  easily  discovered.  Its  next  allies,  the  cosmo- 
politan Painted  Lady  (Vanessa  cardui)  and  the 
American  Painted  Beauty  (Vanessa  Huntera), 
[Fig.  96],  construct  a  different  sort  of  nest,  draw- 


HABITS. 


Ill 


ing  together,  by  means  of  an  irregular  web,  leaves, 
buds,  and  bitten  fragments  of  the  plant  on  which 
they  feed,  so  as  to  form  within  a  rounded  cavity, 
with  an  opening  just  large  enough  to  enter. 
The   Goatweed   butterfly  of  the  west   (Anaea 


FIG.  ST.— Anaea  Andria ;  a,  caterpillar  ;  5,  chrysalis ;  c,  leaf  of  goat-weed 
ee\v«d  at  the  edges  to  form  nest  of  caterpillar  ;  nat.  size  (Riley). 

Andria)  makes  a  nest  [Fig.  97]  very  similar  to 
that  of  the  Red  Admiral,  but  devours  its  upper 
instead  of  its  lower  part,  until,  having  eaten  itself 
out  of  house  and  home,  it  is  forced  to  construct  a 
new  habitation. 


112  HABITS. 

But  perhaps  the  most  interesting  nest  of  all  is 
that  made  by  the  caterpillar  of  the  Viceroy  [Fig. 
98].  This  caterpillar  hibernates  when  partly 
grown,  and  provides  for  the  occasion  a  winter  resi- 
dence, which  is  occupied  only  during  the  cold 
season.  For  this  purpose  it  eats  the  sides  of  a 
willow-leaf  nearly  to  the  midrib,  for  about  one 
third  the  distance  from  the  tip,  ordinarily  select- 
ing for  the  purpose  a  leaf  near  the  end  of  a  twig  ; 
the  opposite  edges  of  the  rest  of  this  leaf  it  brings 
together,  and  not  only  fastens  them  firmly  with 


FIG.  98. — a,  leaf  of  willow  as  cut  by  the  caterpillar  of  Basilarchia  Archippus 
for  its  hibemaculum  ;  &,  the  hibernaculum  formed  ;  nat.  size  (Riley). 

silk,  but  covers  this  nest  outside  and  inside  with 
a  carpet  of  light-brown  glossy  silk,  so  that  the  leaf 
is  nearly  hidden  ;  nor  is  this  all ;  it  travels  back 
and  forth  on  the  leaf -stalk  and  around  the  twig, 
spinning  its  silk  as  it  goes,  until  the  leaf  is  firmly 
attached  to  the  stalk,  and  in  spite  of  frost  and 
wind  will  easily  hang  until  spring.  Following 
the  projecting  midrib,  the  caterpillar  creeps  into 
this  dark  cell  head  foremost  and  closes  the  open- 
ing with  its  hinder  segments,  all  abristle  with 
spines  and  warts.  The  other  species  of  the  same 
genus,  the  Red-spotted  and  the  Banded  Purple, 


HABITS. 


113 


have  the  same  habits  ;  the  latter  feeds  on  birches  ; 
and  if  we  examine  these  trees  in  early  spring, 
when  all  sorts  of  ichneumon  flies  are  just  beginning 
to  wander  about  in  search 
of  prey,  we  can  hardly 
fail  to  be  struck  by  the  de- 
ceptive resemblance  these 
hibernacula  of  the  Band- 
ed Purple  bear  to  the 
opening  buds  and  curv- 
ing terminal  shoots  of  the 
very  twig  on  which  they 
occur  [Fig.  99]  ;  the  color 
of  the  soft  down  of  the 
buds  and  the  enveloping 
silk  of  the  hibernacula  is 
as  similar  as  are  their 
forms ;  and  this  mimetic 
resemblance  is  doubtless 
as  effective  as  it  is  inter- 
esting. 

A  large  number  of  cat- 
erpillars attain  their  full 
growth  and  change  to 
chrysalis  before  winter, 
passing  the  cold  months  in  torpid  sleep  ;  but 
besides  the  caterpillars  of  the  purples,  which 
hibernate  when  half  grown,  there  are  many  others 
which  hibernate  at  different  times  of  caterpillar 


PIG.  99.— Hibernaculnm  (a)  of 
Basilarchia  Arthemis  on  a  shoot  of 
budding  birch  as  it  appears  in  June 
in  the  White  Mountains,  N.  H.,  to 
show  its  resemblance  to  the  buds 
(6) ;  nat.  size. 


114  HABITS. 

life.  Most  of  the  meadow  browns  or  satyrs 
hatch  from  the  egg  late  in  the  season,  and  hiber- 
nate before  feeding  upon  anything  more  than  their 
own  egg-shells  ;  one  of  them, 
however,  the  White  Mountain 
butterfly,  probably  hibernates 
laof  Thana7sCEnenmt  f  ull  grown,  crawling  f or  that  pur- 

nat.  size.  .     .  .  , 

pose  into  crevices  between  the 
stones  and  rigid  moss  of  the  alpine  heights  where 
it  lives.  So,  too,  the  caterpillars  of  our  dusky 
wings,  Thanaos  [Figs.  100,  101]  hibernate  full 
fed,  and  only  change  to  chrysalis  as 
winter' s  icy  bonds  begin  to  break  ; 
but  the  winter  histories  of  too  many 
even  of  our  commoner  butterflies 
are  unknown  ;  though  probably  the  ******  nat 
larger  number  of  hibernating  caterpillars  pass 
the  winter  in  a  half -grown  condition. 

The  only  point  of  interest  in  the  lives  of  chrys- 
alids  is  their  different  mode  of  suspension  ;  but 
as  this  will  need  to  be  fully  mentioned  in  discuss- 
ing the  classification  of  butterflies,  we  will  pass 
it  by  for  the  present,  and  consider  the  full-fledged 
butterfly. 

Awaking  from  its  long  sleep,  the  creature  finds 
itself  arrayed  in  new  beauty  ;  ordinarily  it  has 
escaped  from  its  prison- walls  soon  after  sunrise, 
and  for  an  hour  or  two  it  rests  quietly  until  its 
moist  wings  are  fully  dried  and  expanded.  Our 


HABITS.  115 

new  friend  is  a  daughter  of  high  noon.  There  are 
few  butterflies  abroad  in  New  England  before 
eight  or  nine  o'clock  of  a  summer's  day,  and  long 
before  nightfall,  with  closed  wings,  and  antennae 
snugly  packed  between,  they  are  quietly  resting 
beneath  some  leaf  or  clinging  to  some  grass-blade. 
Each  species  has  its  own  peculiar  haunts  from 
which  it  may  be  easily  stirred.  Driving  one 
morning  within  an  hour  after  sunrise  across  the 
sandy  plains  of  Nantucket,  along  a  road  fringed 
with  a  row  of  stunted  pines  some  fifty  feet  from 
the  track,  a  continuous  stream  of  Blue-  eyed 
Graylings  (Cercyonis  Alope)  [see  Figs.  143,  144] 
arose,  stirred  from  the  low  tops  of  the  bordering 
pines  by  the  rumble  of  our  wagon-  wheels  ;  none 
were  to  be  seen  either  before  or  behind  us,  but  on 
either  side  they  constantly  arose  as  we  reached 
them,  and,  wafted  by  the  wind,  sank  drowsily  to 
the  earth.  Just  be- 
fore nightfall,  at 
the  proper  season, 
one  may  readily 
discover  the 
American  Copper 


HypO-        FIG.  lOS.-Eurymns  Philodice,  male,  nat.  size; 

phlaeas)      or    the  ' 
Clouded    Sulphur    (Eurymus    Philodice)    [Figs. 
102-104],  clinging  head  upward  and  with  droop- 
ing wings  to  any  common  herbage. 


116 


HABITS. 


But  we  are  sending  our  friend  to  bed  before 
ever  he  has  busied  himself  with  the  day !     His 


PIG.  103.  —  Eurymus  Philodice,  female,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right 
(Harris). 

first  thought  appears  to  be  of  honey,  and  off  he 
goes,  probing  every  flower  he  meets,  and  spend- 
ing the  greater  part  of  the  time  in  this  employ- 
ment. Some  butterflies  are  less  greedy  than 
others,  and  spend  long  hours  in 
sunning  themselves,  resting  up- 
on the  leaves  of  herbs  or  trees 
or  perhaps  upon  the  ground, 
gently  half  opening  and  shut- 
ting their  wings  ;  many  kinds 
are  of  a  lively  and  even  pug- 
nacious disposition,  and  perch 
themselves  upon  the  tip  of  a 
twig  or  on  a  stone  or  some  such 
outlook,  and  dash  at  the  first 
butterfly  that  passes,  especially 
if  it  be  one  of  their  own  species  ;  then  the  two 
advance  and  retreat,  forward  and  backward,  time 


nat-  6ize- 


HABITS,  117 

and  again,  circle  around  each  other  with  amazing 
celerity,  all  the  while  perchance  mounting  sky- 
ward, until  suddenly  they  part,  dash  to  the 
ground,  and  the  now  quiet  pursuer  again  stations 
himself  on  the  very  spot  he  quitted  for  the  fray. 
But  they  are  not  always  particular  to  choose  one 
of  their  own  kind  for  this 
combat.  Toss  your  hat  in 
the  air,  and  almost  any  of 
our  Angle- Wings  will  dash 
at  it  and  circle  around  it  as 
it  rises  and  falls  ;  and  the  PSas10n^HSs  SS£ 
little  American  Copper 

[Fig.  105],  one  of  our  smallest  butterflies,  will 
dart  at  every  bulky  grasshopper  or  locust  that 
shoots  across  its  field  of  vision. 

Some  butterflies  are  as  fond  of  water,  or  even 
of  ordure,  as  they  are  of  the  sugared  sweets  of 
flowers.  Every  one  must  have  noticed  at  the 
brink  of  roadside  pools  left  by  a  recent  rain,  how 
the  yellow  butterflies  will  start  up  at  one's  ap- 
proach, flutter  about  a  few  moments,'  and  then 
settle  down  again  to  their  repast.  On  favorable 
occasions,  you  may  find  them  ranged  by  hundreds 
along  the  edge  of  a  puddle,  with  wings  erect, 
crowded  as  closely  as  they  can  be  packed.  The 
little  azure  butterflies  congregate  in  the  same  way 
about  moist  spots  in  the  roads  through  woods  ;  but 
as  they  choose  less  frequented  places,  this  is  not 


118  HABITS. 

so  common  a  sight.  Our  Tiger  Swallow-tails 
throng  about  lilac-blossoms,  and  become  so  in- 
toxicated that  on  one  occasion  a  friend  of  mine 
caught  sixty  of  them  at  once  between  his  two 
hands. 

The  butterflies  I  have  mentioned  show  an  ap- 
parent fondness  for  each  other's  company,  apart 
from  the  attractions  of  the  flowers  or  the  muddy 
road  ;  indeed,  there  are  very  few  butterflies  which, 
at  the  time  &f  their  greatest  abundance,  do  not 
show  a  tendency  to  congregate.  The  Monarch,  or 
Milk-weed  Butterfly  (Danais  Plexippus)  [Fig. 
106],  for  example,  may  be  seen  quite  by  himself, 
sailing  majestically  over  the  fields,  until  late  in 
the  season,  when,  having  multiplied  to  excess, 
vast  swarms  are  found  together  ;  together  they 
mount  in  the  air  to  lofty  heights,  as  no  other  but- 
terfly appears  to  do,  and  play  about  in  ceaseless 
gyrations  ;  and  sometimes  they  crowd  so  thickly 
upon  a  tree  or  bush,  as  by  their  color  to  change  its 
whole  appearance  [Fig.  107]  ;  occasionally  we 
hear  of  the  migrations  of  butterflies  in  swarms, 
but  they  are  of  rare  occurrence,  and  have  mostly 
been  observed  in  the  tropics.  Mr.  W.  Edwards, 
however,  relates*  how,  from  the  top  of  Pegan  Hill, 
in  Natick,  Massachusetts,  he  saw  such  a  moving 
swarm  flying  steadily  for  hours  in  a  single  direc- 

*  American  Naturalist,  xi.,  244. 


120  HABITS. 

tion.  They  passed  too  high  for  recognition,  al- 
though, by  his  description  of  their  size  and  their 
mode  of  flight,  it  was  probably  the  same  butterfly 
which  we  have  just  mentioned. 

The  movements  of  butterflies  on  the  wing  are 
as  different  as  the  flights  of  birds,  and  just  as  an 
ornithologist  may  distinguish  many  birds  by  their 


FIG.  107. — Cluster   of   Danais  Plexippus,   alighted   on   a  bush ;   reduced. 
(After  Thaxter.) 

mode  of  flight  when  their  form  and  colors  are 
indistinguishable,  so  the  observant  entomologist 
may  often  determine  a  butterfly  from  a  consider- 
able distance.  In  the  case  of  the  entomologist, 
however,  the  decision  is  more  difficult,  since  there 
are  such  rapid  replacements  of  one  species  by 
another  throughout  the  summer  that  direct  com- 


HABITS.  121 

parison  of  the  flight  of  similar  species  is  often 
impossible. 

This  supplanting  of  one  species  by  another,  it 
mayvbe  added,  is  in  wonderful  adaptation  to  the 
parallel  changes  going  on  in  the  vegetable  world, 
especially  among  the  flowers.  I  do  not  know  that 
any  of  our  naturalists  or  artists  have  written  of 
the  harmony  between  the  prevailing  tints  of  a 
New  England  landscape  at  different  times  of  the 
year,  and  of  the  insect  world  at  the  same  seasons. 
Our  common  butterflies, 
which  nature  has  been 
at  such  pains  to  adorn, 
show  a  shifting  panorama 
of  form  and  color  from 
early  spring  to  the  time 

Of     frOSt.       First,     in     the        FIG.  108.-ThanaosBrizo,nat.  size; 
-t  -\       n  -i       under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

sombre     leafless    woods 

come  the  various  dusky  wings  [Fig.  108],  brown 
and  black,  skipping  softly  in  and  out  among  the 
gray  rocks  and  over  the  dry  leaves  and  dark  pools 
of  melting  snow.  Hard  upon  these,  in  the  time 
of  early  violets,  and  frequenting  the  spots  most 
loved  by  them,  follow  the  little  blue  butterflies. 
Then,  as  spring  fairly  bursts  upon  us  with  its  fresh 
and  varied  hues,  come  crowds  of  queenly  swal- 
low-tails, lustrous  with  metallic  gleam  [Fig.  109], 
or  striped  and  belted  with  gay  colors  ;  and  the 
banded  and  spotted  purples  that  court  the  quiet 


HABITS. 


123 


forest  road  and  the  brink  of  the  mountain  brook  ; 
the  soft  white  butterflies  [Figs.  110-112],  that 
look  too  pure  for  earth,  less  retiring  than  the  last, 


Fia.  110.— Pieris  rapae,  male,  nat.  size  (Riley). 

float  about  our  gardens,  alas  !  on  sad  intent ; 
while  the  brisk  little  tawny  and  black  skippers 
[Figs.  113-116]  everywhere  bustle  and  whisk 
about.  Summer,  with  its  blazing  sun  and  diver- 
sified blossoms,  brings  us  the  hot-looking  coppers 
[Fig.  117],  and  all  that  dappled  band  of  fritilla- 


PIG.  111.— Pieris  rapae,  female,  nat.  size  (Riley). 

ries  (Dryades)  [Fig.  118]  and  angle- wings  [Fig. 
119],  blocked  in  red  and  black  above,  and  often 
variegated  by  odd  dashes  and  spots  of  burnished 


124 


HABITS. 


FIG.  113  —  Limochores  Taumas. 
female,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on 
right  (Harris). 


PIG.  112.  —  Caterpillar  (a)  and 
chrysalis  (b)  of  Pieris  rapae,  nat. 
size  (Riley). 


FIG.  114.—  Anthomaster  Leonar- 
dus,  male,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface 
on  right  (Harris). 


FIG.  115.— Polites  Peckius,  male, 
nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right 
(Harris). 


FIG.  116.— Polites  Peeking,  fe- 
male, nat.  size ;  under  surface  on 
right  (Harris). 


FIG.  117.— Chrysophanns  Thoe.  nat. 
size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Packard). 


HABITS. 


125 


silver,  or  by  peacock  eyes  beneath.     How  they 
crowd  about  the  spreading  thistle-blossoms,  or  on 


FIG.  118. — Argynnis  Aphrodite,  nat.  size ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

the  many -flowered  umbels  of  the  milk- weed,  and 
fan  themselves  with  content  at  their  sweet  lot ! 
As  autumn  approaches  and  the  leaves  grow  dull, 


FIG.  .119.— Polygonia  Progne,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Packard). 

the  grain  ripens  in  the  meadow  and  the  pastures 
parch  with  drought,  then  come  the  satyrs  or 
meadow-browns  [Figs.  120,  121  ;  see  also  Figs. 


126  HABITS. 

143,  144],  lazily  dancing  by  the  roadside  and  over 
the  thickets  which  skirt  the  fields  ;  in  the  time  of 
golden  rods  and  yellow  and  blue  asters  the  great 


FIG.  120.—  Satyrodes  Eurydice,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

throng  of  yellow  [see  Figs.  102,  103]  and  orange 
butterflies  appear  ;  some  of  them  are  with  us 
throughout  the  season,  companions  of  the  butter- 
cup, the  dandelion,  and  the  rudbeckia  ;  but  now 


PIG.  121.— Cissia  Eurytus,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

they  swarm,  flitting  busily  in  zigzag  courses  over 
upland  pasture  and  lowland  meadow,  by  marsh 
and  brook,  in  field  and  fen,  crowding  around  the 
open  flowers,  or  dancing  in  pairs  in  mid-air. 


CHAPTER  YIIL 

SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND   HISTORIES. 

THE  various  aspect  of  the  butterfly  world  at 
different  seasons,  to  which  allusion  has  just  been 
made,  is  not  so  conspicuous  as  it  would  be  did 
each  species  pass  through  its  cycle  of  changes  and 
transformations  only  once  a  year.  This  is  the 
case,  however,  with  the  smaller  portion  of  our 
butterflies.  Most  of  them  have  two,  and  not  a 
few  three,  broods  each  year,  so  that  the  same 
butterflies  appear  again  and  again  throughout  the 
season,  or  in  some  longer-lived  species  may  be 
found  in  the  butterfly  state  all  the  year  round, 
one  brood  continuing  upon  the  wing  until  the 
next  is  born.  But  as  one  season  of  the  year  dif- 
fers from  another  in  character,  so  is  one  brood  of 
butterflies  often  subject  to  influences  which  the 
next  avoids  ;  this  often  provokes  a  diverse  habit 
in  different  broods  of  the  same  insect.  Some 
species,  moreover,  hibernate  as  butterflies  ;  others 
as  chrysalids  ;  others,  as  we  have  seen  already, 
as  caterpillars  ;  and  a  considerable  number  are 
dependent  for  the  continuation  of  the  species 
upon  the  power  possessed  by  the  egg  to  brave  the 


128         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

winter's  cold.  It  may  then  be  easily  imagined 
what  complications  of  habits  and  histories  are 
possible  in  the  butterfly  world,  when  the  winter 
may  be  passed  at  any  (though  generally  at  a 
fixed)  period  of  life,  and  when  a  species  may  be 
single-brooded,  or  may  twice  or  thrice  run  the 
circle  of  its  transformations  within  a  single  year. 
When,  moreover,  we  recognize  that  these  frequent 
repetitions  of  the  cycle  are  largely  due  to  temper- 
ature, and  therefore  vary  to  a  certain  extent  with 

the  latitude  and  even 
with  the  season,  we  can 
understand  how  nearly 
every  variation  we  can 
conjecture  finds  its  coun- 
terpart in  the  actual  his- 

FIG.    122.-Thecla  Calanus,   nat.      tones    of      OUr    OWU    but- 
size ;  under  surface  on  left.  ...  ._TT          ...., 

terflies.  We  will  recite  a 
few  cases,  each  illustrating  some  peculiarity. 

The  Banded  Hair-streak  (Thecla  Calanus)  [Fig. 
122]  appears  on  the  wing  during  July  and  lays 
its  eggs  toward  the  end  of  that  month  and  early 
in  August  ;  these  eggs  remain  unhatched  until  the 
following  spring,  when  the  caterpillar  emerges, 
feeds  on  oak-leaves,  changes  to  chrysalis  in 
June  and  July,  and  after  a  fortnight  the  butter- 
flies of  the  new  year  appear. 

The  Bronze  Copper  (Chrysophanus  Thoe)  [see 
Fig.  117]  also  hibernates  in  the  egg  state,  and 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.        129 

although  the  butterflies  produced  from  these  eggs 
do  not  appear  until  the  latter  part  of  June,  or 
only  a  little  earlier  than  the  Banded  Hair-streak, 
and  lay  their  eggs  in  July,  these  eggs  hatch  at 
once,  and  the  caterpillars  mature  so  rapidly  that 
a  new  brood  of  butterflies  appears  by  the  middle 
or  end  of  August,  and  lays  its  eggs  during  Sep- 
tember ;  and  it  is  this  second  brood  of  eggs  which 
passes  over  the  winter. 

The  Brown  Elfin  (Incisalia  Augustus)  [Fig.  123] 
hibernates  in  the  chrysalis  state  and,  as  might 
be  expected,  the  butterflies 
appear  early  in  spring ;  in- 
deed this  species  is  one  of 
our  earliest,  flying  toward 
the  end  of  April  or  very 
early  in  May  ;  by  the  end 


of  May  the  butterflies,  with 

rare  exceptions,  have  disappeared  ;  the  eggs  hatch 
at  once,  and  the  caterpillars  probably  attain  ma- 
turity in  the  latter  part  of  June,  change  to  chrys- 
alis and  remain  in  this  condition  throughout  the 
hot  season  and  until  the  following  spring.  Like 
the  Banded  Hair-streak,  this  insect  is  single- 
brooded,  but  it  hibernates  as  a  chrysalis  instead 
of  as  an  egg,  and  passes  the  hot  season  as  a  chrys- 
alis instead  of  being  then  at  the  height  of  its 
metamorphoses  ;  the  case,  which  is  not  an  isolated 
one,  is  the  more  strange  since  warm  weather  ap- 


130         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

pears  in  general  to  be  the  prime  agent  in  the 
change  from  chrysalis  to  imago,  and  the  period 
from  June  to  September,  when  this  butterfly  is 
dormant  in  the  chrysalis,  is  the  very  one  when 
most  butterflies  are  under- 
going the  greatest  amount 
of  change. 

The  Gray  Hair-streak,  or 
Hop-vine  Thecla,  as  Harris 
calls  it  (Uranotes  Melinus) 

PIG.  124.-yranotes  Melinus,      [Fig.     1241,    flJCS    frOHl     May 
nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  left.      L 

to  September,  being  long- 
lived  in  the  imago  state  ;  it  winters  as  a  chrysalis, 
like  the  preceding,  but  it  does  not  appear  so  early 
as  that  species,  being  seldom  seen  before  the  tenth 
of  May  ;  a  second  brood,  sprung  from  the  eggs 
laid  by  the  May  butterflies,  makes  its  advent 
early  in  July,  or  occasionally 
late  in  June  ;  fresh  accessions  ,/fg ;>? ,,,  \ 
to  its  numbers  from  belated  %:  |- 1^ 
chrysalids  are  made  throughout  ife^^J  I 
July,  and  these  later  ones  may  *4jp*/ 
be  found,  with  faded  beauty,  Plo  m_^vm  Co. 
even  until  the  middle  of  Sep-  SS2S  oS1eft!lze ;  under 
tember ;  from  eggs  laid  by  this 
second  brood  of  butterflies  spring  the  chrysalids 
which  survive  the  winter. 

The  Tailed  Blue  (Everes  Comyntas)  [Fig.  125] 
is  also  supposed  to  winter  in  the  chrysalis.     It  is 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         131 

triple-brooded,  yet  it  appears  no  earlier  than  the 
preceding  double-brooded  butterfly,  namely,  be- 
tween the  sixth  and  tenth  of  May  ;  by  the  middle 
of  June,  sometimes  by  the  end  of  the  first  week, 
it  has  disappeared,  and  within  two  months  of  its 
first  appearance  is  once  more  upon  the  wing  ;  by 
the  end  of  July  it  has  again  become  scarce, 
though  occasional  specimens  persist  until  the  third 
generation  has  made  its  appearance,  about  six 
weeks  after  the  appearance  of  the  second,  or  about 
the  twentieth  of  August.  Butterflies  of  this 
third  brood  may  be  found  nearly  throughout  Sep- 
tember, and  doubtless  lay  their  eggs  early  in  Sep- 
tember, giving  the  caterpillar  time  to  attain  its 
full  growth  and  change  to  chrysalis  before  winter. 

AH  these  examples  have  been  taken  from  a 
single  family  of  butterflies,  comprising  the  hair- 
streaks,  blues,  and  coppers,  to  show  how  differ- 
ent the  histories  of  allied  insects  may  be.  Yet  it 
rarely  happens  in  this  family  that  winter  is 
passed  either  in  the  larva  or  imago  state,  and  we 
therefore  hardly  expect  to  find  the  complication 
we  may  look  for  elsewhere.  Choosing  our  exam- 
ples then  from  all  the  families  of  butterflies,  we 
will  continue  our  histories  with  an  eye  to  further 
differences. 

Commencing  with  those  which  winter  as  cater- 
pillars, we  may  instance  the  Blue-eyed  Grayling 
[see  Figs.  143,  144],  which  is  single-brooded  and 


132         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

first  appears  on  the  wing  in  the  early  half  of 
July.  As  usual  among  butterflies,  the  males  are 
seen  about  a  week  before  the  females,  but  even 
taking  this  into  account  the  females  live  a  long 
while  before  depositing  a  single  egg  ;  the  earliest 
record  I  have  of  this  event  is  the  twenty-second  of 
August,  or  from  five  to  six  weeks  after  the  first  ap- 
pearance of  females  ;  they  continue  to  lay  eggs 
until  the  end  of  the  first  week  in  September  ;  and  in 
keeping  with  this  indolence  of  the  females  is  the 
duration  of  the  egg-state — from  three  to  four 
weeks,  a  period  longer  than  in  any  butterfly 
known  to  me  where  the  eggs  hatch  at  all  the 
same  season.  The  earliest  caterpillars  therefore 
appear  by  the  middle  of  September,  at  which 
time  their  food-plant,  grass,  is  still  abundant,  and 
plenty  of  it  green  and  succulent ;  yet  the  habit  of 
the  species  is  fixed,  and  the  larva  will  exhibit  no 
haste  ;  it  will  devour  its  egg-shell  quite  as  a  mat- 
ter of  course,  but  that  digested,  it  crawls  into 
some  corner  of  a  dead  stick  or  a  dry  leaf  and 
starves  till  spring-time.  Remove  it  to  a  warm 
room  and  place  it  among  new  springing  grass  ; 
the  result  is  the  same,  at  least  for  a  time  ;  I  have 
not  tried  it  very  long  ;  it  cannot  be  cajoled  into 
eating.  The  further  exact  history  of  this  insect 
in  New  England  is  unknown,  but  in  West  Virginia 
the  chrysalis  state  continues  for  a  fortnight.  In 
New  England  the  perfect  insect  appears  later  in 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         133 

the  season  than  almost  any  other  single-brooded 
butterfly  ;  the  conditions,  however,  under  which 
it  passes  the  winter  are  common  to  many  of  our 
butterflies. 

We  have  already  stated  that  the  Viceroy  [see 
Fig.  84]  hibernated  as  a  caterpillar  ;  but  there 
are  some  interesting  features  in  its  history  which 
may  now  be  related.  Quite  as  soon  as  there  is  a 
morsel  of  food  to  eat  on  the  twig  which  has  been 
its  winter  home,  it  forsakes  its  retreat  in  the 
curled  leaf,  and  breaks  its  long  fast.  The  butter- 
flies developed  from  the  wintering  caterpillars 
appear  early  in  June,  become  abundant  by  the 
middle  of  the  month,  and  continue  for  another 
fortnight  to  emerge  from  the  chrysalis  ;  about  a 
month  after  the  first  appearance  of  the  males  the 
females  begin  to  lay  eggs  ;  the  caterpillars  soon 
hatch  and  grow  rapidly,  and  late  in  July  change 
to  chrysalis  ;  in  this  state  they  continue  about 
eight  days,  and  before  the  middle  of  August  a 
new  brood  of  butterflies  is  abroad.  The  caterpil- 
lars from  eggs  laid  by  this  brood  are  those  which 
construct  the  little  hibemacula  wherein  they  find 
protection  from  the  wintry  cold  ;  no  trace  of  any 
tendency  to  construct  such  habitations  appears  in 
the  caterpillars  of  the  first  brood  ;  here  we  have 
an  instinct  inherited  by  alternate  generations  ;  or 
only  when  the  nightly  chills  or  the  desiccating 
food  indicates  the  coming  of  an  unfriendly  season. 


134         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

Take  next  our  commonest  yellow  butterfly,  the 
Clouded  Sulphur,  familiar  to  every  one  [see  Figs. 
102,  103].  The  first  brood  of  butterflies,  which  is 
also  the  least  numerous,  appears  about  Boston, 
on  warm  sunny  hillsides,  sometimes  as  early  as 
the  twenty-fourth  of  April,  sometimes  not  until 
toward  the  middle  of  May,  the  advent  of  this  in- 
sect being  more  than  usually  affected  by  the  sea- 
son. Toward  the  end  of  May  it  becomes  very 
abundant,  then  begins  to  diminish  in  numbers, 
until  only  a  few  rubbed  females  remain  when  the 
next  brood  appears  ;  the  females  begin  to  lay 
eggs  very  soon  after  birth,  the  eggs  hatch  in  five 
days,  and  the  caterpillars  often  attain  their  full 
growth  in  three  weeks,  while  the  chrysalis  state 
lasts  from  nine  to  eleven  days.  The  appearance 
of  the  second  brood  is  varied,  like  the  first,  ac- 
cording to  the  latitude  ;  in  the  vicinity  of  Boston 
it  usually  appears  during  the  first  week  in  July  ; 
the  caterpillars  of  this  brood  mature  quite  as 
rapidly  as  those  of  the  previous,  and  numbers  of 
the  butterflies  are  sure  to  be  on  the  wing  at  the 
advent  of  the  third  brood,  which  is  occasionally 
as  early  as  mid- August,  but  often  is  delayed  until 
September  ;  the  butterflies  of  this  last  brood  are 
still  numerous  in  the  middle  of  October,  and  con- 
tinue flying  until  after  the  first  severe  frost ;  some 
have  even  been  seen  in  the  neighborhood  of  Bos- 
ton as  late  as  the  middle  of  November.  As  the 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         135 

eggs  of  this  brood  are  laid  throughout  September 
and  even  later,  and  at  this  season  the  caterpillars 
do  not  mature  so  rapidly,  winter  overtakes  at 
once  caterpillars  of  various  ages,  chrysalids,  and 
butterflies,  and  probably  also  eggs.  The  experi- 
ence of  breeders,  and  the  diversity  in  the  time  of 
appearance  of  the  butterflies  in  the  spring,  render 
it  probable  that  the  cold  season  kills  not  only  the 
butterflies  and  eggs,  but  perhaps  the  chrysalids 
as  well,  leaving  the  caterpillars  to  renew  the  life 
of  the  species  in  the  spring.  Indeed  it  is  a  com- 
mon thing  in  plural-brooded  butterflies  to  find 
every  possible  stage  on  the  ground  as  winter 
comes  on  ;  for  the  more  the  number  of  broods  is 
multiplied,  the  more  confused  do  the  distinctions 
between  them  become  ;  and  in  many  cases,  were 
the  season  longer,  no  doubt  it  would  become  quite 
impossible  to  trace  them.  The  butterflies  go  on 
sucking  honey  and  laying  eggs,  the  eggs  hatch- 
ing, the  caterpillars  eating,  until  a  heavy  frost 
kills  off  all  the  unprepared  and  terminates  the 
history  of  the  species  for  the  season  ;  those  of 
one  stage  survive  the  shock,  the  others  die  ;  this 
is  the  case  with  several  of  our  swallow-tails  and 
yellow  butterflies  and  with  not  a  few  others ; 
sometimes  it  is  the  caterpillar,  sometimes  the 
chrysalis,  at  others  the  butterfly  which  survives  ; 
the  egg,  in  such  cases,  never. 
Now  let  us  turn,  finally,  to  those  which  winter 


136          SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

as  butterflies,  and  consider,  first,  the  Milk- weed 
butterfly,  or  Monarch  [see  Fig.  106].  It  is  the 
longest-lived  of  our  butterflies.  It  leaves  its  win- 
ter-quarters later  in  the  season  than  other  hiber- 
nating butterflies,  and  continues  upon  the  wing 
until  July  and  August,  laying  eggs  all  the  time, 
so  that  the  insect  may  be  found  in  all  its  earlier 
stages  throughout  most  of  the  summer  ;  the  eggs 
hatch  in  four  or  five  days  ;  the  caterpillar  attains 
its  full  growth  in  two  or  three  weeks,  and  the 
chrysalis  hangs  from  nine  to  fifteen  days.  Whether 
or  not  there  is  a  second  brood  in  New  England  is 
doubtful ;  but  the  earliest  butterflies  which  have 
not  hibernated  may  be  found  in  July,  so  that 
while  the  earlier  stages  are  passed  rapidly,  the 
perfect  insect  often  lives  a  full  year,  mingling  on 
the  wing  with  its  own  progeny  and  witnessing  the 
decay  and  renewed  growth  of  the  plant  which 
nourished  it ;  for  the  milk- weed  dies  early,  and  is 
not  sufficiently  grown  to  support  the  caterpillars 
when  the  first  butterflies  appear  in  the  spring. 

The  Green  Comma  (Polygonia  Faunus)  [Fig. 
126],  of  the  hill-country  of  New  England,  has  a 
history  which  may  serve  as  an  example  of  most 
of  our  angle-winged  butterflies.  The  first  warm 
days  of  spring  lure  it  from  its  winter  hiding- 
places,  but  it  is  not  until  the  end  of  May  that  it 
begins  to  lay  eggs  ;  these  soon  hatch,  the  caterpil- 
lars reach  maturity  by  the  end  of  June  or  later, 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         137 

the  chrysalis  hangs  about  twelve  days,  and  by  the 
middle  of  July  a  new  brood  is  on  the  wing,  min- 
gling with  a  few  surviving  parents.  By  mid- 
August  it  is  found  in  the  greatest  profusion,  and 
continues  on  the  wing,  in  numbers  constantly  re- 
duced by  death,  until  October,  when  the  surviv- 
ors go  into  winter  quarters,  and  before  the  end  of 
the  month  the  last  have  disappeared.  None  of 


FIG.  126.— Polygonia  Faunns,  nat.  size ;  under  surface  on  left. 

these  butterflies    lay  eggs  until  the    following 
spring. 

Another  of  the  angle- wings,  the  Nettle  Tortoise- 
shell  [Fig.  127],  has  a  slightly  different  history, 
flying,  as  it  does,  at  three  different  times.  The 
hibernating  butterflies  appear  by  the  middle  of 
March,  in  scanty  numbers  at  first,  more  numer- 
ously afterward,  and  continue  on  the  wing  until 
nearly  the  end  of  May.  They  lay  their  eggs  on 
the  young  nettle  plants  late  in  April  and  early  in 


138         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

May,  and  the  caterpillars  begin  to  change  to 
chrysalids  in  the  first  half  of  June  ;  after  passing 
from  ten  to  twelve  days  in  this  state,  or  about  the 
middle  of  June,  the  first  brood  of  butterflies  from 
caterpillars  of  the  same  year  makes  its  appear- 
ance ;  this  brood  continues  on  the  wing  until  after 
the  middle  of  July,  the  eggs  are  apparently  laid 


FIG.  127.— A'glais  Milberti,  nat.  size  (Harris). 

very  soon  after  the  eclosion  of  the  butterfly,  and 
the  second  brood  appears  at  the  very  end  of  this 
month,  or  early  in  August ;  these  must  lay  their 
eggs  at  once,  for  the  caterpillars  are  full  grown  by 
the  end  of  August,  and  appear  as  butterflies  early 
in  September,  before  those  of  the  previous  brood 
have  disappeared  ;  these  September  butterflies 
soon  hibernate,  and  early  in  the  following  spring 
deposit  eggs,  which,  unlike  their  sisters  of  the 
previous  broods,  they  must  carry  unlaid  for 
many  months.  We  have  again  in  this  insect  an 
illustration  of  the  prodigality  of  nature,  to  which 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         139 

reference  has  been  made  ;  for  winter  overtakes  it 
in  every  stage  and  kills  off  all  that  cannot  with- 
stand the  cold,  the  butterfly  and  perhaps  an 
occasional  chrysalis  alone  surviving. 

For,  besides  those  which  pass  the  winter  in  only 
one  of  the  four  stages  of  life,  there  are  others, 
and  perhaps  the  Tortoise-shell  is  one  of  them, 
which  enjoy  a  great  liberty  in  this  respect ;  but 


FIG.  128.— Vanessa  Atalanta,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

the  Red  Admiral  [Fig.  128]  is  a  better  example. 
This  butterfly,  common  to  Europe  and  America, 
hibernates  in  both  countries  alike  in  the  chrysalis 
and  imago  state.  In  the  spring,  hibernating  but- 
terflies and  those  hatched  from  wintering  pupae 
mingle  on  the  wing  and  deposit  their  eggs  simul- 
taneously. The  wintering  imago  awakes  late 
from  its  long  sleep,  being  seldom  seen  before  the 
beginning  of  the  second  week  in  May  ;  and  since 


140         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

individuals  emerging  from  wintering  chrysalids 
often  appear  by  the  last  week  in  the  same  month 
and  continue  to  emerge  until  the  middle  of  June, 
battered  and  brilliant  specimens  from  the  same 
original  stock  may  be  seen  flying  in  company. 
Caterpillars  of  various  ages  from  eggs  laid  by 
these  butterflies  may  be  found  thro  ugh  nearly  the 
whole  of  June  and  the  first  half  of  July  ;  the 
chrysalids  hang  for  about  ten  days  and  the  but- 
terflies appear  in  the  first  days  of  July  and  con- 
tinue to  emerge  from  the  chrysalis  throughout  the 
month  ;  the  eggs  are  soon  laid  again,  and  another 
brood  of  caterpillars  may  be  found  in  August ; 
butterflies  from  these  appear  late  in  August  and 
early  in  September,  and  continue  a  long  while 
upon  the  wing,  as  they  are  among  the  last  of  our 
hibernating  butterflies  to  seek  their  winter  quar- 
ters ;  not  all  the  chrysalids,  however,  disclose  the 
butterfly,  but  some  of  these  also  hibernate.  We 
have,  therefore,  a  double-brooded  butterfly  of 
which  specimens  fresh  from  the  chrysalis  may  be 
found  upon  the  wing  three  times  a  year,  winter 
approaching  in  the  midst  of  the  season  of  pupa- 
tion, and  arresting  the  development  of  a  portion 
of  the  brood. 

Mixed  modes  of  hibernation  may  also  be  found 
in  other  butterflies ;  some,  like  our  common 
American  Copper  [see  Fig.  105],  pass  the  winter 
both  as  a  caterpillar  and  a  chrysalis  ;  and  others, 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         141 

like  the  Cloudless  Sulphur  (Catopsilia  Eubule)  of 
the  Middle  States,  as  a  caterpillar  and  a  butter- 
fly ;  this  last  instance  is  the  more  striking  since 
the  insect  appears  to  be  unable  to  survive  the 
winter  in  the  intermediate  chrysalis  stage. 

It  is  not  always  the  cold  of  winter,  however, 
which  causes  an  arrest  of  development ;  for  there 
is  a  most  extraordinary  phenomenon  in  the  life 
history  of  some  butterflies,  which  arises  in  mid- 
summer ;  viz.,  a  period  of  lethargy  or  premature 
hibernation.  It  may  occur  in  the  eggs,  as  in  the 
case  we  cited  of  some  of  the  hair-streaks,  where 
these  remain  unhatched  from  July  or  August 
until  the  next  spring.  It  may  also  be  found  in 
some  chrysalids,  where,  as  in  the  eggs,  it  is 
merely  early  hibernation.  But  there  are  others, 
and  doubtless  more  than  we  know,  where  it  as- 
sumes peculiar  characteristics.  Notice,  for  exam- 
ple, the  Zebra  Swallow-tail  (Iphiclides  Ajax)  of 
the  south.  This  butterfly  passes  through  the  ex- 
cessive number  of  four  or  five  broods  each  season  ; 
but  only  a  portion  of  the  chrysalids  of  each  brood 
disclose  the  butterfly  the  same  season  ;  the  re- 
mainder, in  numbers  constantly  increasing  with 
each  successive  brood,  go  into  premature  hiberna- 
tion, some  even  as  early  as  June,  and  do  not  dis- 
close the  butterfly  until  the  following  spring  ;  so 
that  the  spring  brood  of  each  year  is  made  up  of 
fragments  of  all  the  last  year's  broods.  One  may 


142         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

easily  divine  what  complication  might  ensue 
through  some  modification  of  such  a  phenomenon. 

But  this  feature  is  most  curious  when  it  affects 
the  active  stages  of  an  insect's  life.  Beyond  the 
torpidity  of  winter,  we  do  not  know  that  such  a 
phenomenon  occurs  in  the  perfect  stage  ;  but  it  is 
by  no  means  an  uncommon  occurrence  among 
caterpillars,  although,  so  far  as  we  know,  it  does 
not  happen  outside  of  certain  limited  groups.  In 
some  cases  it  is  simply  premature  hibernation ; 
in  others  it  is  pure  lethargy,  the  caterpillar 
affected  by  ifc  awaking  from  its  torpidity  during 
the  same  season  and  resuming  its  active  glutton- 
ous life,  as  if  nothing  had  happened. 

One  of  the  most  extraordinary  cases  occurs 
among  the  fritillaries,  and  was  first  observed  by 
a  French  naturalist,  Vaudouer  ;  according  to  this 
observer,  one  of  the  European  fritillaries  upon 
which  he  experimented  flies  in  May  and  again  in 
July  and  August ;  the  caterpillars  from  the  sec- 
ond summer  brood  are  half  grown  when  winter 
comes,  hibernate  in  this  stage,  and  in  time  pro- 
duce the  spring  brood  ;  the  caterpillars  of  the 
spring  brood,  when  they  have  reached  the  hiber- 
nating age,  late  in  June,  act  in  a  precisely  similar 
manner,  and  some  of  them  do  not  arouse  until 
the  succeeding  spring,  when,  with  the  caterpillars 
of  the  summer  brood,  they  produce  a  new  spring 
brood  ;  but  other  caterpillars  of  the  spring  brood, 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 


143 


FlG    129._Brenthi8  Bellona,   Bat. 

upper 


size 


which  became  lethargic,  awaken  from  their  tor- 
pidity after  a  time,  resume  eating,  undergo  their 
transformations,  and  emerge  as  butterflies  in  July 
and  August  ;  the  spring  brood  is  therefore  made 
up  from  both  broods 
of  the  previous  year, 
or,  in  other  words, 
uncles  and  nephews, 
aunts  and  nieces, 
have  virtually  be- 

come   brothers    and 

sisters,  and  the  but- 

terfly  is  at  tlie  same  time  single  and   double 

brooded. 

We  have,  however,  in  this  country  a  still  more 
remarkable  case  in  a  near  relative  of  the  butterfly 
just  discussed,  the  Meadow  Fritillary  (Brenthis 
Bellona)  [Figs.  129-132].  This 
butterfly  appears  on  the  wing  in 
May,  July,  and  September,  and 
yet  it  is  only  single-brooded,  at 
least  if  we  have  correctly  inter- 
preted all  the  facts.  In  this 
species  there  seem  to  be  two  sets 
of  individuals,  each  following 
its  own  cycle  of  changes,  apparently  with  almost 
as  little  to  do  with  the  other  set  as  if  it  were  a 
distinct  species  ;  each  set  has  its  own  distinct 
seasons,  and  this  gives  rise  to  the  apparition  of 


144         SE4SONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 


two  or  three  successive  broods  in  the  course  of 

the  year. 
At  the  very  end  of  the  season  this  butterfly  will 

be  found  laying  eggs,  which  hatch  in  a  few  days  ; 

the  little  caterpillars, 
after  devouring  their 
egg-shells,  refuse  fur- 
ther food  and  hiber- 
nate ;  these  hibernat- 
ing juvenile  larvae  be- 
long to  one  of  the 

FIG.  131.— Brenthis  Myrina,  nat.  size  ; 

under  surface  on  right  (Harris).    Placed      tWO  Sets  OI  individuals 
here  for  comparison  with  B.  Bellona. 

mentioned ;    this    we 

will  term  the  aestival  or  summer  series  ;  for  by  the 
end  of  the  following  June  the  caterpillars  have 
attained  their  growth,  and  passing  through  the 
chrysalis  state,  emerge  as  butterflies  about  the 
middle  of  July  ;  these  are  the  butterflies  of  mid- 
summer, continuing  upon  the  wing 
until  the  end  of  September,  in  which 
month  they  deposit  their  eggs  ;  these 
eggs  hatch  in  about  a  week,  and  the 
little  caterpillars  hibernate  as  before. 
The  history  of  this  aestival  series  is 
quite  similar  to  that  of  the  larger    Myrina,  nat.  size. 
fritillaries,  all  of  which  are  single-brooded,  ap- 
pear in  early  summer,  lay  their  eggs  early  in  the 
autumn,  and  hibernate  as  juvenile  larvae. 
The  second  set  of  individuals,  which  we  will 


FIG.  132.— Chrys- 
alis   of    Brenthis 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         145 

term  the  vernal,  in  contrast  to  the  aestival  series, 
hibernate  as  half -grown  caterpillars  and  produce 
the  earliest  brood  of  butterflies  ;  these  make  their 
appearance  about  the  middle  of  May,  although 
they  are  occasionally  seen  earlier  ;  they  are  hardly 
common  before  the  end  of  the  month,  and  are  as 
long-lived  as  their  companions  of  the  aestival 
series ;  they  do  not  lay  their  eggs  before  July 
or  the  end  of  June — that  is,  about  the  time 
when  the  butterflies  of  the  aestival  series  ap- 
pear ;  the  eggs  hatch  speedily  and  the  cater- 
pillars grow  as  usual,  moulting  twice  ;  beyond 
this  point  all  the  caterpillars  do  not  develop 
alike  ;  some  continue  in  what  would  appear  the 
most  natural  way  ;  as  caterpillars  they  eat,  as 
chrysalids  they  sleep,  and  then  appear  in  Sep- 
tember, gay  and  frolicsome  butterflies — but 
doomed,  I  believe,  to  an  untimely  end  ;  for  the  • 
cold  autumnal  blasts  sweep  them  away  before  the 
eggs  are  fully  developed  in  their  ovaries.  It  is, 
however,  possible  that  some  of  them  may  lay  eggs 
which,  hatching,  produce  larvae  which  at  once 
hibernate  and  the  following  year  become  members 
of  the  aestival  series.*  It  appears  more  probable, 

*  Since  this  was  written,  some  facts  have  come  under  my  own 
and  others'  observation,  leading  to  the  belief,  as  suggested  in  the 
text  as  possible,  that  the  butterflies  of  this  brood  lay  eggs  at 
once,  and  that  the  caterpillars  from  them  hibernate  in  their 
earliest  stage,  thus  transferring  their  allegiance  the  following 


146         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

however,  that  it  is  a  vain  effort  of  nature  to  de- 
velop a  second  brood,  which  in  a  more  southern 
climate,  with  a  longer  season,  would  prove  suc- 
cessful. 

But  this  we  have  said  was  the  history  of  a  part 
only  and  probably  of  the  smaller  part ;  the  other 
portion  of  the  August  caterpillars  do  not  awake 
from  their  lethargy  at  all  until  another  season, 
wintering  as  half -grown  larvae,  and  finally  reap- 
pearing as  butterflies  the  following  June. 

Thus  we  have  two  series  of  individuals  in  the 
same  species,  each  single-brooded,  or  one  making 
an  effort  toward  a  second  generation,  which  prob- 
ably ends  in  disaster,  or  at  most  eventually  feeds 
the  other  series. 

In  all  plural-brooded  butterflies  with  an  exten- 
sive distribution  in  latitude,  the  number  of  gener- 
ations varies  with  the  length  of  the  season,  and 
this  will  account  for  the  apparent  waste  we  often 
see  as  winter  approaches,  for  such  changes  must 
be  gradual,  and  in  intermediate  districts  irregu- 
lar, dependent  upon  the  season.  Where  such  a 
phenomenon  occurs  as  that  we  noticed  in  the 
Zebra  Swallow  tail  [see  Figs.  145-147],  in  which 
some  chrysalids  of  each  brood  live  until  the  fol- 
lowing spring,  it  manifestly  makes  little  differ- 
ence how  short  the  season  may  be,  or  how  sud- 

spring  to  the  aestival  series  ;  in  which  case  the  butterfly  is  gener- 
ally single,  occasionally  double  brooded. 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         147 

denly  and  effectually  any  brood  may  be  cut  off  ; 
these  chrysalids,  and  so  the  species,  will  survive. 
That  this  phenomenon  is  more  common  than  is 
generally  supposed  is  shown  by  the  increasing 
number  of  proofs  brought  forward  of  lethargic 
tendencies  in  caterpillars  and  of  persistent  torpor 
in  many  midsummer  chrysalids.  It  is  also  indi- 
cated by  the  variation  in  the  numerical  propor- 
tions of  different  broods  ;  the  winter  is  the 
severest  season,  and  consequently  the  spring 
broods  are  ordinarily,  and  under  simple  condi- 
tions would  always  be,  less  numerous  than  the 
summer  or  autumn  broods  ;  generally  the  broods 
go  on  increasing  in  individuals  as  the  season  ad- 
vances ;  but  in  the  Meadow  Fritillary  it  is  not  so, 
and  we  have  seen  the  reason  why  ;  for  it  is  made 
up  of  only  a  part  of  the  previous  brood.  We  see 
similar  phenomena  in  other  butterflies  without 
knowing  the  cause,  and  it  may  be  presumed  that 
these  are  butterflies  which  have  not  long  enjoyed 
the  privilege  of  the  later  brood,  or,  in  other  words, 
in  which  a  part  of  the  chrysalids  fail  to  persist 
until  the  following  spring.  In  the  case  of  our 
Tiger  Swallow-tail,  which  is  found  from  Alaska 
to  Florida,  we  have  a  butterfly  which  is  single- 
brooded  in  the  north  and  double-brooded  in 
New  England  ;.  but  the  second  brood  is  much  less 
abundant  than  the  first,  and  the  change  as  we  go 
north  is  probably  effected  by  the  lingering  devel- 


148        SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

opment  of  some  caterpillars  and  the  disposition 
of  chrysalids  to  winter  early.  Wherever  in  a 
double-brooded  butterfly  the  second  brood  is  less 
abundant  than  the  first,  it  is  probable  that  the 
butterfly  is  partly  single  and  partly  double 
brooded — that  is,  that  the  early  brood  of  a  given 
year  is  made  up  of  the  direct  descendants  of  each 
brood  of  the  preceding  year. 

Occasionally,  the  difference  in  the  number  of 
broods  affects  the  mode  of  hibernation.  The 
Black  Swallow-tail  (Princeps  Polyxenes),  for  in- 
stance, is  triple-brooded  in  the  south,  and  hiber- 
nates as  a  butterfly  and  perhaps  also  as  a  chrys- 
alis ;  in  the  north  it  is  double-brooded,  and  hiber- 
nates only  as  a  chrysalis. 

To  return  again  to  our  Meadow  Fritillary  with 
its  curious  history.  Should  the  season  be  so  long 
that  the  second  brood  of  the  vernal  series  could 
lay  eggs,  these  eggs  would  at  once  hatch,  for  their 
normal  period  being  often  as  short  as  five  days, 
weather  which  could  induce  a  butterfly  to  lay 
eggs  would  at  once  ripen  the  embryo  ;  the  cater- 
pillars would  then  be  forced  to  hibernate  in  the 
same  condition  as  those  of  the  aestival  series,  and 
become  members  of  that  series  the  next  year ; 
while  the  vernal  series  would  be  kept  up  by 
means  of  those  caterpillars  of  its  first  brood 
which,  in  the  previous  year,  had  gone  into  pre- 
mature hibernation.  Thus  the  vernal  series 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         149 

would  continually  feed  the  aestival ;  yet  it  would 
suffer  no  greater  loss  than  by  the  practical  steril- 
ity of  the  September  butterflies.  Were  the  sea- 
son still  longer,  the  vernal  series  would  become 
double-brooded,  the  caterpillars  from  the  Sep- 
tember butterflies  having  time  to  attain  half  then- 
size  before  hibernation  ;  the  aestival  series,  on  the 
other  hand,  would  probably  by  this  time  have 
assumed  the  position  our  vernal  series  occupied 
at  the  outset,  and  adopted  and  monopolized  the 
lethargic  propensities  of  the  latter. 

The  preceding  hypothesis  was  suggested  sev- 
eral years  since  to  explain  the  probable  effect  of 
climate  on  generation  in  butterflies  ;  it  was  not 
deemed  capable  of  proof,  inasmuch  as  the  butter- 
fly does  not  naturally  live  in  a  climate  allowing 
of  such  changes.  But  it  has  received  a  remark- 
able confirmation  in  some  forced  experiments  of 
Mr.  Edwards  of  West  Virginia,  who  has  pointed 
out  that  caterpillars  of  this  species  carried  from 
the  north  to  West  Virginia  and  raised  in  the  south 
acted  in  precisely  the  way  that  had  been  sug- 
gested ;*  they  all  went  through  their  transforma- 

*  These  observations  of  Mr.  Edwards  were  published  in  the 
Canadian  Entomologist  (volume  vii.  p.  189  seq. ;  see  also  vol. 
viii.  p.  161),  and  were  not  unreasonably  supposed  by  him  and 
others  to  be  opposed  to  the  account  of  the  insect  I  had  previously 
given.  They  may  be  so,  but  the  author  neglected  to  state  that 
the  caterpillars  raised  by  him  were  reared  in  West  Virginia 
south  of  the  natural  range  of  the  insect  (as  in  response  to  my 


150         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

tions  without  lethargic  retardation,  and  the  but- 
terflies which  emerged  in  the  autumn  laid  eggs  ; 
if  eggs  were  laid,  we  may  presume  they  hatched, 
and  the  young  caterpillars  hibernated. 

If  now  we  suppose  a  shorter  season,  such  as 
actually  exists  in  some  parts  of  our  country 
where  this  butterfly  occurs,  undoubtedly  the  first 
change  would  be  the  entire  elimination  of  the 
September  butterflies  and  the  hibernation  of  all 
the  vernal  caterpillars  when  half  grown  ;  this  is 
probably  the  actual  state  of  things 
in  parts  of  Canada  ;  still  farther 
north  these  caterpillars  would  prob- 
ably by  degrees  hibernate  when  first 
born,  and  we  should  then  be  trans- 
ported to  the  simple  condition  which 
prevails  in  the  larger  fritillaries 

Atlantis,  Bat.  size.      ,--.-,.  -,    -,  -,  n*    -,   , 

[Fig.  133],  and  have  only  one  flight 
of  butterflies  in  the  season. 

What  may  be  the  exact  climatic  features  which 
determine  the  number  of  generations  of  a  butter- 
fly has  not  yet  been  studied  ;  but  there  are  som£ 
curious  difficulties  in  the  way  of  understanding 

special  inquiries  he  afterward  informed  me),  and  this  gives  his 
account  an  entirely  different  appearance.  It  is  to  be  regretted 
that  this  able  and  industrious  observer  has  since  then  given  the 
history  of  other  butterflies  without  informing  us  whether  they 
were  reared  in  New  York  or  West  Virginia,  in  both  of  which 
regions,  four  degrees  of  latitude  apart,  he  is  accustomed  to  rear 
insects. 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         151 

them.  The  cosmopolitan  Painted  Lady  [Fig.  134], 
for  instance,  is  double-brooded  in  New  England, 
both  in  the  districts  where  the  contrasts  of  heat 
and  cold,  moisture  and  drought,  are  excessive — 
that  is,  where  the  climate  has  those  peculiarities 
which  are  termed  "  continental  ;"  and  also  on 
islands  such  as  Nantucket  in  southern  New  Eng- 
land, where  a  much  greater  evenness  prevails  and 
the  climate  partakes  of  an  "  insular"  character  ; 
yet  in  the  valleys  of  Switzerland,  where  perhaps 


FIG.  134.— Vanessa  cardui,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

of  all  places  in  Europe  the  climate  presents  the 
greatest  and  most  sudden  inequalities,  and  there- 
fore is  most  similar  to  that  of  New  England,  and 
certainly  is  more  continental  than  that  of  Nan- 
tucket,  this  butterfly  is  single-brooded.  We  have 
exceedingly  few  identical  butterflies  in  Europe 
and  the  United  States,  and  this  apparently  is  the 
only  one  of  them  that  differs  in  its  broods  in  the 
two  countries  ;  but  there  are  several  of  onr  but- 
terflies which  are  represented  by  very  closely 


152         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

allied  species  in  Europe,  and  in  half  a  dozen  or 
more  of  these  we  find  quite  similar  disparities,  all 
of  which  are  in  the  same  direction. 

The  European  Tortoise-shell  (Aglais  urticae), 
for  example,  is  generally  double-brooded  ;  occa- 
sionally a  triple  brood  is  mentioned  ;  it  is  one 
of  the  commonest  of  European  butterflies,  and 
reaches  from  the  North  Cape  to  the  Mediterra- 
nean ;  our  congeneric  species,  the  Nettle  Tortoise- 
shell  [see  Fig.  127],  is  rarely  found  south  of  the 
northernmost  parts  of  the  United  States,  and  yet 
it  is  triple-brooded  in  all  parts  of  Canada.  Everes 
Amyntas,  again,  occurs  throughout  Europe,  with 
the  exception  of  certain  northern  and  northwest- 
ern portions,  and  is  double -brooded  ;  our  Tailed 
Blue  [see  Fig.  125],  named  for  the  resemblance  to 
its  European  congener,  and  by  some  careless 
authors  considered  identical  with  it,  is  also  a  wide- 
spread insect ;  but  even  in  New  England,  which 
is  toward  the  northern  limit  of  its  range,  it  is 
triple-brooded.  The  wide-spread  European  blues, 
Rusticus  Argus  and  R.  Aegon,  the  Silver-studded 
Blue,  are  usually  placed  among  monogoneutic  in- 
sects, and  the  latter  certainly  has  only  a  single 
brood  in  England  (where  it  is  the  only  one  of  the 
two  found)  ;  Meyer  Diir  is  in  fact  almost  the  only 
author  who  claims  these  species  as  digoneutic  ; 
both  of  them  occur  in  southern  Europe  ;  the 
American  Pearl-studded  Yiolet  (Rusticus  Scud- 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 


153 


derii),  closely  allied  to  these,  and  an  insect  hardly 
known  south  of  the  Canadian  border,  is  double- 
brooded.  Our  Chequered  White  (Pontia  Proto- 


FIG.  135.— Pontia  Protodice,  male,  nat.  size  (Kiley). 

dice)  [Figs.  135,  136]  is  triple-brooded,  and  the 
European  Bath  White  (P.  Daplidice)  only  double- 
brooded,  while  our  common  Clouded  and  Orange 
Sulphurs  (Eurymus  Philodice  and  E.  Eurytheme) 


FIG.  136.— Ponlia  Pro'odice,  female,  nat.  size  (Eiley). 

[see  Figs.  102,  103]  are  triple-brooded  in  the 
north,  perhaps  polygoneutic  farther  south,  and 
the  closely  allied  European  species  only  single  or 
double  brooded. 


154        SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

But  the  most  striking  example  of  all  will  be 
found  in  the  species  of  the  genus  Iphiclides.  The 
European  I.  Podalirius  is  confined  to  the  Medi- 
terranean region,  while  our  Zebra  Swallow-tail 
belongs  to  the  southern  half  of  the  United  States  ; 
the  regions  are  therefore  fairly  comparable  ;  yet 
we  find  no  mention  of  more  than  two  broods  of  I. 
Podalirius,  while  Mr.  Edwards  has  shown  that, 
even  as  far  north  as  the  Appalachian  valley  of 
West  Virginia,  I.  Ajax  has  four  and  sometimes 
five  generations  during  the  year. 

These  cases  might  perhaps  be  multiplied,  but 
further  positive  evidence  is  not  at  hand  ;  it  should 
be  remarked,  however,  that  there  is  no  reversal 
of  the  rule  :  among  all  the  butterflies  properly 
comparable  on  the  two  continents,  there  is  no 
single  instance  where  the  European  butterfly  has 
more  broods  than  the  American. 

This  result  of  a  comparison  of  the  annual  his 
tories  of  similar  European  and  American  butter- 
flies furnishes  but  another  instance  of  that  in- 
tensity which  seems  to  characterize  all  life  in 
America.  The  expenditure  of  nervous  and  vital 
energy,  against  which  physicians  vainly  inveigh, 
which  superannuates  our  merchants,  lawyers, 
clergymen,  and  other  professional  men,  is  not  in- 
duced by  the  simple  passion  for  gain,  place, 
power  or  knowledge,  but  by  an  uncontrollable 
restlessness,  a  constant  dissatisfaction  with  pre- 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.        155 

sent  attainments  which  marks  us  as  a  hurrying, 
energetic,  enterprising  people.  My  own  experi- 
ence has  been  that  studies  of  precisely  the  same 
nature  and  undertaken  under  similar  external 
conditions  are  accompanied  by  a  very  different 
mental  state  on  the  two  continents.  In  Europe 
we  are  content  to  plod  industriously  on,  uncon- 
scious of  the  need  of  relaxation  ;  in  America  we 
bend  with  nervous  intensity  to  our  work,  and 
carry  the  same  excitement  into  the  relaxation 
which  such  a  life  inevitably  demands.  After  a 
long  absence  in  Europe,  a  keen  observer  may 
even  be  directly  conscious  of  this  quickened  life. 
Now  to  what  shall  we  ascribe  such  peculiarities 
in  animal  life  ?  Naturally  we  look  to  climatic 
influences,  and  our  attention  is  first  attracted  by 
the  well-known  fact  that  if  we  compare  two  places 
in  Europe  and  America  having  the  same  mean 
annual  temperature,  the  extremes  of  variation 
will  prove  much  greater  on  this  side  of  the  Atlan- 
tic. For  example,  while  the  mean  annual,  tem- 
perature of  New  York  is  about  the  same  as  that 
of  Frankfort,  the  summer  temperature  of  the 
former  is  that  of  Rome  and  its  winter  that  of  St. 
Petersburg.  Moreover,  the  changes  from  summer 
to  winter  and  from  winter  to  summer  are  more 
immediate  in  America;  or,  in  other  words,  the 
summers  and  winters  are  longer  by  about  three 
weeks.  Such  long  and  hot  summers  are  of 


156         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

course  favorable  to  the  multiplication  of  broods 
in  butterflies  whose  history  allows  a  repetition  of 
the  same  cycle  more  than  once  a  year  ;  the  length 
of  the  winter  is  of  slight  consequence,  as  long  as 
the  insects  can  survive  it ;  and  it  can  have  no  in- 
fluence upon  the  number  of  broods,  unless  there 
be  species  (of  which  we  know  nothing)  able  to  re- 
sist a  cold  winter  only  in  certain  stages  of  exist- 
ence, and  a  multiplication  of  whose  broods  might 
require  some  pliability  in  this  respect.  Not 
only,  too,  are  our  summers  longer  and  hotter,  but 
they  enjoy  a  marked  preponderance  of  sunshine, 
as  compared  with  European  summers  ;  and  this 
alone  would  almost  seem  capable  of  producing 
the  variation  we  have  noticed  in  the  number  of 
broods. 

Differences  will  be  found  in  all  other  climatic 
phenomena  of  the  two  continents.  "  From 
Europe  as  a  standard,"  says  Blodgett,*  "  the 
American  climate  is  singularly  extreme  both  in 
temperature,  humidity,  quantity  of  rain,  wind, 
and  cloudiness  or  sensible  humidity.  The  oscilla- 
tions of  the  conditions  are  greater,  and  they 
vibrate  through  long  measures  above  and  below 
the  average.  All  the  irregular  as  well  as  regular 
changes  are  of  this  sort,  and  the  European  observ- 
er defines  the  climate  as  directly  antagonistic  to 

*  Climatology  of  the  United  States,  p.  221. 


SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES.         157 

that  he  has  left."  These  differences,  however,  as 
Humboldt  and  others  long  ago  pointed  out,  have 
a  broader  bearing  than  the  above  statements 
would  imply  ;  for  they  are  characteristic  of  the 
eastern  shores  of  both  worlds  as  opposed  to  the 
western,  the  meteorological  phenomena  of  the 
eastern  United  States  being  almost  precisely 
paralleled  by  those  of  northern  China,  where 
great  excesses  of  temperature  occur,  with  wide 
variability,  long  summers  and  winters,  and  rapid 
transitions. 

Perhaps  on  these  grounds  we  can  most  simply 
account  for  the  difference  in  the  number  of  broods 
in  certain  butterflies  on  the  two  continents  ;  but, 
if  so,  then  it  follows  that  we  ought  to  anticipate 
similar  differences  between  the  broods  of  some  of 
the  species  found  both  in  Europe  and  in  eastern 
Asia  ;  a  point  of  which  we  can  assert  absolutely 
nothing,  for  want  of  data.  These  grounds,  how- 
ever, will  certainly  be  insufficient  to  account  for 
the  differences  to  which  we  have  alluded  in  man  ; 
for  what  contrast  could  well  be  greater  than  that 
existing  between  the  national  character  of  the 
Chinese  and  that  of  the  Americans  !  We  are 
rather  forced  to  believe  that  the  causes  of  the  dis- 
tinction between  the  European  and  the  American, 
if  these  are  due  to  physical  agencies,  must  chiefly 
be  sought  elsewhere. 

I  have  thus  attempted  to  show  that  the  lives  of 


158         SEASONAL  CHANGES  AND  HISTORIES. 

butterflies  possess  no  mean  interest,  and  that  we 
are  probably  still  far  from  understanding  all  the 
complications  which  arise  in  the  history  of  a  single 
one  of  those  which  are  double-brooded  or  have  a 
wide  geographical  distribution.  If  any  of  my 
readers  have  been  puzzled  by  their  strangeness, 
and  think  that  perhaps  I  have  drawn  the  pic- 
ture with  too  free  a  hand,  let  me  assure  them 
that,  for  simplicity's  sake,  I  have  been  forced  to 
keep  quite  out  of  view  one  element  of  discord  by 
which  the  complexity  is  often  vastly  increased, 
and  to  which  I  shall  next  invite  attention. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   COLORING   OF  BUTTERFLIES,    WITH  FURTHER  HISTORIES. 

IN  discussing  the  subject  of  coloring  in  butter- 
flies, I  do  not  intend  to  present  it  from  the  poet's 
point  of  view,  seductive  as  this  might  be,  but  to 
excite  interest  and  quicken  imagination  in  a  more 
prosaic  way  ;  namely,  by  pointing  out  some  of 
the  laws  which  govern  this  coloring,  and  some  of 
the  lines  by  which  the  present  tribes  have  at- 
tained their  gorgeous  hues  and  exquisite  design  ; 
in  short,  to  present,  through  the  medium  of  ob- 
servation and  fact,  some  cause  for  this  rich  dis- 
play and  variety. 

For  myself,  I  confess  that  such  a  discussion 
possesses  a  greater  charm  than  any  poetic  rhap- 
sody, however  exquisitely  framed,  which  merely 
recounts  the  wondrous  beauty  of  these  delicate 
creatures.  If,  beneath  this  display,  we  can  dis- 
cover Almighty  wisdom,  ordaining  and  harmoniz- 
ing color  and  design,  and  can  appreciate  in  some 
measure  the  adaptation  of  this  embellishment  to 
the  creature's  environment,  our  time  will  not  be 
misspent. 


ICO  •    THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 

In  butterflies,  as  in  other  animals,  species  of  the 
widest  distribution  usually  display  the  greatest 
variety  in  their  characteristic  peculiarities  ;  no- 
where is  this  more  true  than  in  their  coloring. 
Latitude,  especially,  has  an  influence  in  these 
alterations,  and  altitude  produces  almost  pre- 
cisely the  same  effects  as  latitude.  Many  species 
present  so  different  an  aspect  at  the  northern  and 
southern  extremities  of  their  range  as  to  have 
been  described  as  distinct  species.  So  we  may 
discover  a  difference  of  considerable  importance 
in  the  coloring  of  butterflies  as  a  whole,  in  passing 
from  the  tropics  toward  the  poles,  just  as  we  ob- 
serve a  certain  procession  of  color  during  the  sea- 
son, as  one  species  is  replaced  by  another.  Every 
one  is  aware  that  the  most  brilliant  tints  among 
birds  and  butterflies  are  found  in  the  tropics,  while 
the  sombre  shades  are  more  in  sympathy  with 
the  gloomier  subarctic  regions.  Prittwitz*  and 
Meyer-Biirf  have  studied  this  question  in  the 
European  Lepidoptera  as  a  whole,  and,  with  some 
exceptions,  we  may  accept  their  generalizations 
as  applicable  to  the  butterflies  of  our  own  country. 

The  highest  life  of  color  in  the  wings  of 
butterflies  consists  in  sharply  defined  spots  of 
red,  blue,  and  yellow,  and  especially  of  red. 
These  colors  predominate  in  the  tropical  re- 

*  Stett.  entom.  Zeit.,  xvi.,  175. 

t  Actes  Soc.  Helvet.  Sc.  Nat.,  Vers.  xxxvii.  145-152. 


WITH  FURTHER  HISTORIES.  161 

gions,  and  are  rare  in  alpine  and  subarctic  dis- 
tricts. As  we  go  north,  the  colors  become  less 
sharply  defined,  then  gradually  fade  away  or  be- 
come blended  with  surrounding  tints  ;  the  red 
first  disappears,  the  blue  follows,  the  yellow 
longest  maintaining  its  hold,  although  Prittwitz 
considers  the  blue  the  most  persistent.  As  soon 
as  we  leave  the  tropics  these  brighter  colors  are 
seldom  seen  in  combination  ;  and  as  we  approach 
the  higher  temperate  regions,  we  are  constantly 
struck  by  the  impurity  of  the  tints.  Take  a 
single  example  from  the  common  sulphur  butter- 
flies of  the  genus  Eurymus  [see  Figs.  102,  103]  ; 
the  more  southern  species  have  the  under  surface 
of  the  hind  wings  of  a  clear  canary  yellow,  and 
what  few  spots  they  possess  are  clustered  into 
sharply  defined  markings  next  the  margin  ;  these 
features  predominate  until  we  arrive  at  the  Middle 
States,  when  a  change  begins  ;  and  on  reaching 
Labrador  we  find  the  opposite  extreme,  a  ground 
color  of  greenish  yellow  completely  flecked  with 
atoms  of  brown,  giving  the  wing  a  grimy  appear- 
ance ;  while  the  marginal  markings  are  simply 
more  densely  clustered  atoms,  forming  spots 
which  gradually  pass  into  the  general  dinginess 
of  the  wing. 

This  loss  of  purity  and  greater  or  less  suffusion 
of  markings  is  characteristic  of  northern  and 
alpine  forms,  and  is  in  perfect  accord  with  another 


162  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 

phenomenon,  the  appearance  of  those  varieties 
or  sports  which  are  called  examples  of  suffusion. 
Although  they  frequently  seem  very  unlike  the 
normal  form,  a  little  study  always  suffices  to 
show  to  what  species  they  belong.  This  disguise 
is  produced  by  the  blending  of  certain  colors, 
especially  of  black,  white,  or  silvery  tints,  which 
normally  occur  at  distinct  parts  of  the  wing  ; 
there  may  be,  for  example,  two  parallel  series  of 
white  spots  normally  crossing  the  wing  in  the 
middle  and  near  the  border  ;  under  this  disguise 
of  suffusion,  the  whole  intervening  area  is  covered 
or  shot  with  this  color,  generally  more  or  less 
sprinkled  with  atoms  of  the  normal  ground,  pro- 
ducing an  impure  tint,  characteristic  of  north- 
ern countries.  Now  these  suffusions  have  been 
known  almost  exclusively  from  the  temperate 
regions,*  and  to  show  that  they  are  not  exces- 
sively rare,  I  may  add  that  I  have  seen  nearly 
fifty  specimens  of  our  common  American  Copper, 
and  we  are  acquainted  with  at  least  eighteen  of 
the  two  hundred  and  seven  butterflies  of  the  east- 
ern United  States  in  which  such  suffusions  occur. 
A  large  number  have  been  recorded  in  Europe, 
where  they  are  commonest  in  the  alpine  districts 
of  Switzerland. 

These  general  changes  of  prevailing  tints  among 

*  Mr.  Edwards  of  West  Virginia  has  artificially  produced  a 
number  of  instances  by  subjecting  chrysalids  to  unusual  cold. 


WITH  FUR  THER  HIS  TOR1E S.  1 63 

butterflies  from  the  tropics  northward  are  perhaps 
less  striking  because  so  gradual,  and  seem  fairly 
connected  with  physical  conditions  ;  color  is  de- 
pendent upon  light,  and  of  course  the  greatest 
intensity  and  duration  of  light  is  in  the  tropics  ; 
the  two  phenomena  are  completely  parallel.  It 
is,  however,  harder  to  understand  a  very  curious 


FIG.  137.— Papilio  Antiopa,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

sport  in  one  of  our  butterflies,  which  is  known  to 
have  originated  within  ten  years.  There  are  a 
very  few  butterflies  common  to  this  country  and 
Europe  ;  three,  the  Painted  Lady,  the  Red  Ad- 
miral, and  the  Camberwell  Beauty  [Fig.  137],  have 
long  been  known  to  inhabit  both  countries  ;  and 
not  a  few  entomologists  have  attempted  to  find 
some  difference  between  representatives  from 


164  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 

either  continent,  thus  far  without  real  success. 
Within  a  few  years  the  cabbage  butterfly  [see 
Figs.  110, 11 1]  was  accidentally  introduced  from 
Europe,  and  has  now  spread  widely  ;  nor  does  any 
difference  exist  between  European  and  ordinary 
American  examples  of  this  insect.  But  there  has 
suddenly  appeared  in  this  country  a  variety  un- 
known to  Europe,  or,  if  known,  excessively  rare, 
in  which  the  normal  chalky  white,  which  forms 
almost  the  only  color  of  the  wings,  is  replaced  by 
a  pale  sulphur  tint ;  probably  few  of  our  ento- 
mologists have  not  seen  this  variety,  although 
from  its  resemblance  on  the  wing  to  our  common- 
est of  butterflies,  the  Clouded  Sulphur,  it  would 
ordinarily  escape  observation. 

At  the  close  of  the  last  chapter,  I  promised  to 
discuss  a  new  element  of  complexity  which  arises 
in  considering  the  different  broods  of  butterflies  ; 
this  complexity,  it  would  seem,  is  already  suffi- 
ciently embarrassing,  when  we  have  lethargy  of  the 
caterpillar,  or  premature  hibernation  of  the  chrys- 
alis, with  the  consequent  commingling  of  broods  ; 
but  in  addition  to  this  the  successive  broods  of 
the  same  butterfly  which  appear  in  a  single  season 
almost  always  differ  from  each  other  ;  often  so 
incredibly  as  to  be  mistaken  for  distinct  species. 
This  phenomenon  is  termed  alternate,  or,  better, 
seasonal  dimorphism — dimorphism  signifying  the 
existence  of  an  animal  under  two  distinct  forms. 


(VI TH  FURTHER  HISTORIES.  165 

The  imported  Cabbage  butterfly  [see  Figs.  110, 
111]  just  mentioned  is  a  case  in  point ;  the  spring 
butterflies  are  smaller  and  of  a  duller  white  than 
the  later  broods,  with  broader  black  markings  on 
the  middle  and  tip  of  the  wing,  and  the  base 
sprinkled  with  black  atoms,  which  are  almost 
entirely  wanting  in  the  other  broods  ;  beneath, 
where  the  markings  in  this  genus  are  most  con- 
spicuous and  va- 
ried, there  is  a 
powdery  streak  of 
black  s c ales 
along  the  middle 
of  the  hind  wings, 
which,  in  the  later 
broods,  is  much 

,  FIG.  138.— Pieris  oleracea,  nat.  size  (Harris). 

less  conspicuous. 

A  somewhat  similar  distinction  occurs  in  its 
near  ally,  the  Gray- veined  White 
[Figs.    138,   139].      The    summer 
FIG.  m-chrysaiis     brood  of  this  species  is  almost 

of     Pieris    oleracea,  ....  ..  ...          ,., 

nat.  size  (Riiey).  pure  white,  while  the  spring 
brood,  besides  being  smaller,  has  the  under  sur- 
face of  the  hind  wings  and  of  the  tip  of  the  fore 
wings  heavily  washed  with  yellow,  and  all  the 
veins  in  the  same  area  broadly  sprinkled  with 
dark  scales.  Moreover,  in  all  the  whites,  the 
hind  wings  of  the  second  generation  are  longer 
than  those  of  the  first. 


166  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 

In  the  American  Copper  [see  Fig.  105],  spring 
individuals  are  of  a  more  fiery  red,  and  the  orange 
band  of  the  nnder  surface  of  the  hind  wings  is 
broader  ;  while  in  later  broods  the  markings  are 
less  vivid  and  less  distinctly  marked,  and  there 
is  a  longer  tooth  on  the  margin  of  the  hind  wings. 

In  our  Pearl  Crescent  (Phyciodes  Tharos) 
[Figs.  140,  141],  according  to  the  recent  discoveries 
of  Mr.  Edwards,  the  spring  type  (which  he  former- 
ly considered  a  species  distinct  from  the  summer 


FIG.    140.— Phyciodes  Tharog,  sum-        FIG.  141.— Phyciode 
mer  brood,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on     brood,  nat.   size;   under  surface  on 
right  (Harris).  right  (Harris). 

type,  but  which  he  has  recently  bred  from  the 
latter)  is  characterized  by  the  purple  or  pearly 
hue  of  the  under  surface  of  the  hind  wings,  and 
by  heavier  markings  on  the  same  wings  ;  espe- 
cially by  the  presence  of  great  patches  of  ferrugi- 
nous or  dusky  color  at  the  outer  margin  ;  mark- 
ings which  usually  are  only  indicated  in  the  sum- 
mer broods,  where  the  color  is  delicately  traced 
with  ferruginous  lines  ;  in  the  spring  butterflies 
the  black  markings  of  the  upper  surface  are  also 
heavier  and  more  diffuse  than  in  the  later  broods. 


WITH  FURTHER  HISTORIES.  167 

There  is  another  form  of  dimorphism  which  is 
not  seasonal,  but  occurs  in  all  broods  alike.  The 
simplest  form  of  this  appears  in  the  genus  Poly- 
gonia,  where  it  affects  nearly  all  the  species.  The 
most  conspicuous  case  is  in  the  largest,  the  Violet 
Tip  (Polygonia  interrogationis)  [Fig.  142],  where 
the  two  forms  were  once  universally  considered 
distinct  species  ;  they  differ  in  the  brightness  and 


FIG.  142.— Polygonia  interrogationis,  nat.  size  (Harris.) 

variegation  of  the  lower  surface  of  both  wings, 
and  the  obscurity  of  the  upper  surface  of  the  hind 
wings  ;  but  the  variation  affects  not  only  almost 
every  part  of  the  coloring,  but  even  the  very  form 
of  the  wings,  as  may  be  readily  seen  by  an  exami- 
nation of  the  exquisite  plates  of  Mr.  Edwards' 
"  Butterflies  of  North  America."* 

*  One  cannot  speak  in  too  high  terms  of  these  matchless  plates. 
The  care  that  has  been  bestowed  upon  them  reflects  the  highest 
credit  upon  the  author  as  well  as  upon  those  whom  he  employs. 


1G8 


THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 


Another  striking  example  may  be  found  in 
the  Blue-eyed  Grayling  [Figs.  143,  144],  the  di- 
morphism of  which  has  recently  been  made  out  by 
Mr.  Edwards.  Once  the  two  forms,  called  respec- 


FIG.  143.— Cercyonis  Alope,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

tively  Alope  and  Nephele,  were  universally  con- 
sidered distinct  species  ;  and  not  unreasonably, 
for  they  were  known  to  inhabit  partly  different 


FIG.  144.— Cercyonis  Alope,  form  Nephele,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right 
(Harris). 

regions,  Alope  being  a  more  southern  and  Nephele 
a  more  northern  form  ;  there  is  indeed  a  wide  ex- 
panse of  territory  which  they  inhabit  in  com- 
mon, but  with  varying  abundance,  according  to 


WITH  FURTHER  HISTORIES.  169 

climatic  conditions.  The  illustrations  here  given 
show  well  the  difference  between  these  varieties, 
but  if  they  were  colored,  it  wonld  be  even  more 
marked. 

These  are  examples  of  simple  or  pure  dimor- 
phism, as  the  others  were  of  seasonal  dimorphism  ; 
but  what  if  we  have  these  mixed  \  and  what  if, 
at  the  same  time,  we 
have  that  commingling  of 
broods  which  results 
from  premature  hiberna- 
tion of  chrysalids  ?  We 
have  one  conspicuous  ex- 
ample of  this  complica- 
tion, of  such  interest  that 
it  is  worth  while  to  give 
the  history  of  the  insect 
in  full.  It  is  the  Zebra 
Swallow-tail  (Iphiclides 
Ajax),  a  butterfly  whose 
northern  limits  barely  FIG.  145.— iphiciides  Ajax,  form 

-,     -VT          -\r       i  -i  _c  Walshii,  nat.  size. 

reach  New  York,  and  for 

whose  history  we  are  indebted  to  the  perseverance 
of  Mr.  Edwards  of  West  Virginia,  -whose  obser- 
vations have  been  so  often  mentioned  here. 

This  author  has  not  only  indisputably  estab- 
lished the  identity  of  two  forms  previously  de- 
scribed as  distinct  species,  but  has  proved  the 
existence  of  a  third  permanent  form  and  has  ad- 


170 


THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 


mirably  traced  the  relations  of  each  form  to  the 
others.  The  scientific  name  of  this  butterfly  is 
Ajax,  which  includes  all  the  forms  which  it 
assumes  ;  the  special  forms  are  called  Walshii, 
Telamonides,  and  Marcellus  [Figs.  145-147].  Each 
form  appears  at  a  different  season  of  the  year  ; 
Walshii  is  the  early  spring  type,  Telamonides  the 

late  spring,  and  Marcel- 
lus the  summer  and  au- 
tumn type.  Nearly  all 
the  butterflies  which,  in 
West  Virginia,  emerge 
from  the  chrysalis  be- 
fore the  middle  of  April 
are  Walshii ;  between 
that  and  the  end  of 
May,  Telamonides  ;  af- 
ter this,  Marcellus.  The 
first  two,  however,  do 
not  appear  to  represent 
distinct  broods  ;  and  this 
point,  to  which  Mr.  Ed- 
wards strangely  failed 
to  draw  attention  in  the 
first  account  of  his  observations,  is  one  of  the 
most  extraordinary  features  in  the  history  of 
the  insect ;  for  Telamonides  is  not  the  direct  con- 
seasonal  produce  of  Walshii,  but  both  are  made  up 
of  butterflies  which  have  wintered  as  chrysalids, 


FIG.    146.— Iphiclides   Ajax,    form 
Telamonides,  nat.  size. 


WITH  FURTHER  HISTORIES.  171 

those  which  disclose  their  inmates  earliest  produc- 
ing Walshii,  the  others  Telamonides  ;  while  all 
buttei-flies  produced  from  eggs  of  the  same  season, 
and  there  are  several  successive  broods,  belong 
to  Marcellus.  Thus, 
besides  the  true 
seasonal  d  i  m  o  r  - 
phism  which  distin- 
guishes the  butter- 
flies produced  from 
eggs  of  the  same 
season  from  those 
derived  from  eggs  of 
the  previous  season, 
we  have  a  second- 
ary seasonal  dimor- 
phism, as  it  may  well 
be  called,  separating 
the  earlier  from  the 
later  produce  of  win- 
tering chrysalids. 
Mr.  Edwards  has 

Shown  that  a  por-  FIG.  147.-Iphiclides  Ajax,  form  Marcel- 
. .  »  ,  -,  his,  nat.  size. 

tion  of  every  brood 

of  chrysalids,  instead  of  disclosing  the  imago 
at  the  end  of  the  ordinary  time,  retain  it,  occa- 
sionally until  the  appearance  of  a  subsequent 
brood,  but  usually  until  the  next  spring.  The 
spring  brood,  for  which  we  are  obliged  to  use  the 


172  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES. 

compound  term  Walshii-Telamonides,  is  therefore 
by  no  means  wholly  produced  from  chrysalids  of 
the  final  brood  of  Marcellus,  but  in  large  measure 
from  those  of  all  the  earlier  broods,  even  includ- 
ing the  earliest  Walshii.  Ajax,  then,  is  at  one 
and  the  same  time,  single,  double,  triple,  quad- 
ruple, and,  if  we  may  trust  Mr.  Edwards,  quin- 
tuple-brooded— a  case  as  yet  without  a  parallel 
among  butterflies.  The  proportion  of  chrysalids 
which  go  into  premature  hibernation  increases  as 
the  season  advances  ;  of  those  produced  from  eggs 
laid  in  April  more  than  ten  per  cent  continue  until 
spring,  from  eggs  laid  in  May  about  thirty-five 
per  cent,  from  those  laid  in  June  from  fifty  to 
sixty  per  cent,  and  from  those  laid  in  July  about 
seventy  per  cent ;  of  course  those  from  later  eggs 
all  hibernate.  Walshii  and  Telamonides,  then, 
produce  Marcellus  the  same  season,  or  either 
Walshii  or  Telamonides  the  succeeding  spring. 
Marcellus  produces  itself  the  same  season,  or  one 
of  the  others  in  the  spring  ;  neither  Walshii  nor 
Telamonides  is  produced  the  same  season  by  any 
of  the  varieties  ;  nor  does  Marcellus  ever  emerge 
from  wintering  chrysalids. 

How  difficult  it  has  been  to  trace  all  these  facts 
will  appear  from  the  following  brief  history  of 
the  species.  It  winters  only  in  the  chrysalis 
state.  The  earliest  variety,  Walshii,  appears 
when  the  peach-trees  bloom,  about  the  middle  of 


WITH  FUR  THER  HIS  TORIES.  1  73 

March.*  The  females  appear  a  few  days  later 
than  the  males,  and  may  be  found  on  peach, 
apple,  and  wild-plum  blossoms,  while  the  males 
are  to  be  seen  by  the  water-side  or  upon  the  road, 
rarely  upon  flowers.  The  caterpillars  feed  upon 
papaw,  and  as  this  tree  is  one  of  the  latest  in  put- 
ting forth  its  leaves,  two  or  three  weeks  elapse 
after  the  appearance  of  the  butterflies  before  the 
young  shoots  of  the  food-plant  are  visible  ;  but 
no  sooner  do  these  appear  than  the  females 
hasten  to  deposit  their  eggs  and  continue  to  do 
so  until  toward  the  end  of  May  ;  the  eggs  hatch 
in  seven  or  eight  days  and  the  caterpillars  are 
from  twenty-two  to  twenty  -nine  days  in  attaining 
their  growth.  Te]amonides,  a  later  variety  of  the 
same  brood,  as  already  explained,  begins  to  fly 
some  weeks  after  Walshii,  and  both  forms  are  for 
a  time  common  ;  the  eggs  of  the  former  variety 
are  sooner  laid,  and  hatch  in  four  or  five  days  ; 
the  caterpillars,  too,  mature  more  quickly,  attain- 
ing their  growth  in  from  fifteen  to  eighteen  days, 
the  earlier  ones  often  overtaking  their  tardier 
predecessors.  About  the  first  of  June  Walshii 
disappears,  and  before  the  end  of  the  month  Tela- 
monides  also  ;  at  the  beginning  of  this  same 
month  Marcellus  appears  and  continues  abundant 
through  the  season.  The  successive  broods  of 

*  Reference  is  made  to  the  season  in  West  Virginia. 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 


174  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 

this  form  overlap  each  other  so  as  to  be  distin- 
guished with  difficulty  ;  butterflies  of  the  earliest 
brood  continue  to  emerge  from  the  chrysalis  until 
after  the  first  week  in  July,  while  those  first  dis- 
closed lay  eggs  early  in  June,  so  that  the  earliest 
individuals  of  the  second  brood  of  Marcellus  ap- 
pear as  soon  as  some  belated  individuals  of  the 
first  brood  ;  the  attempt  to  trace  the  sequence  of 
the  broods  is  therefore  hopelessly  bewildering  ; 
and  we  can  only  judge  by  the  comparative  abun- 
dance or  rarity  of  fresh  individuals  that  there  are 
three  or  four  broods  of  this  form  alone.  Eggs, 
caterpillars,  chrysalids,  and  butterflies  may  still 
be  found  together  until  the  frosts  come  and  de- 
stroy all  except  the  chrysalids. 

This  insect  is  native  to  the  Southern  States, 
and  though  its  range  is  great,  it  does  not  extend 
over  regions  of  very  varied  temperature.  Were  it 
otherwise  we  might  look  for  further  variations, 
such  as  would  appear  when  comparing  northern 
and  southern  individuals.  And  there  is  reason 
to  believe  that  such  a  complication  does  exist  in 
one  of  our  New  England  butterflies  whose  history 
has  been  partially  traced. 

This  butterfly,  the  Spring  Azure  (Cyaniris 
Pseudargiolus)  [Figs.  148,  149],  which  appears  to 
extend  from  Boston  to  San  Francisco  and  from 
Labrador  to  Texas,  has  been  described  under  half 
a  dozen  different  names,  principally  owing  to  the 


WITH  FUR  TIIER  HIS  TORIES.  1 75 

various  forms  it  assumes.  Some  of  these  names 
have  been  applied  to  the  species  as  it  appears  in 
California,  but  as  oar  knowledge  of  its  history  in 
that  region  is  exceedingly  fragmentary,  we  will 
altogether  overlook  it,  and 
speak  of  the  butterfly  as  it 
exists  on  the  Atlantic  coast. 

Beginning    then     in    the 
south,  it  first  appears  as  a 

.  _     _  ...  FIG.  148.— Cyaniris  Pseudar- 

blue  butterfly  With  large  dlS-    giolns,  male,  nat.  tlze ;  upper 

*•  surface  (Harris;. 

t  i  n  c  t  markings  beneath  ; 
some  of  the  males,  however,  are  wholly  brown 
above,  while  others  are  blue  with  a  faint  blush 
of  white  and  a  heavy  brown  border  ;  this  form 
is  called  violacea  [Fig.  150].  Later  in  the  season 
it  appears  with  very  delicate  mark- 
ings beneath  ;  the  males  are  now 
always  blue  above,  with  a  dash  of 
white  in  the  middle  of  the  front 
wing  ;  this  variety  is  called  Pseu- 
dar°lolus  proper  [Fig.  151]. 

^S  we  Pass  northward  a  change 
occurs  in  the  first  brood;  the 
brown  males  gradually  become  rarer 
and  the  blue  males  more  common.  When  we 
have  reached  the  vicinity  of  Boston,  we  have 
the  following  conditions  :  First  appears  a  blue 
butterfly  in  which  the  spots  of  the  under  surface 
are  very  large  and  often  blended  into  great 


176  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 

patches  ;  and  in  which  the  males,  always  blue, 
have  only  a  slight  trace  of  pale  color  on  the 
upper  surface  of  the  front  wings  ;  this 
variety  is  called  Lucia  [Fig.  152]  ; 
it  appears  about  the  middle  of  April, 
and  is  abundant  for  a  month,  when 
it  begins   rapidly  to  decrease,   and 
FIG.  i5o.-cyani-  by  the  end  of  May  is  seldom  seen. 

ris  Pseudargiolus,  "" 

form  violacea,  nat.  The    next  blue  butterfly  to  appear 

size  ;    under    sur-  » 

is  one  corresponding  in  all  respects 
to  the  violacea,  or  first  brood  of  the  south,  ex- 
cepting that  all  the  males  are  blue.  It  makes  its 
advent  during  the  first  week  in 
May  and  remains  on  the  wing 
until  late  in  June.  The  earliest 
individuals  appear  scarcely  more 
than  a  fortnight  later  than  the 
first  individuals  of  Lucia,  and  FIG. 

Pseudargiolus,    form 

therefore  they  cannot  be  produced 


from  them.  Yet  as  it  tends  in  face- 
some  of  its  variations  to  become  like  Lucia,  and 
Lucia  also  varies  in  the  direction 
of  violacea,  it  is  often  absolutely 
impossible  to  draw  any  separat- 
ing line  between  a  series  of  the 
two  forms  collected  in  a  single 
sPot.  There  is  no  alternative  but 
face-  to  suppose  that  just  as  the  first 

brood  of  Ajax  is  dimorphic  and  consists  of  an  ear- 


WITH  FURTHER  HISTORIES.  177 

Her  and  a  later  form,Walshii  and  Telamonides,  so 
this  blue  butterfly  is  dimorphic  in  the  northern 
part  of  its  range,  appearing  as  an  earlier  and  a 
later  form,  Lucia  and  violacea.  Additional  proof 
will  be  found  on  tracing  still  farther  the  history 
of  this  butterfly  in  New  England.  Shortly  after 
the  appearance  of  violacea,  or  about  the  middle  of 
May,  we  encounter  another  blue  butterfly,  too 
early  to  have  been  produced  from  violacea,  just 
as  violacea  appeared  too  soon  to  have  been  pro- 
duced from  Lucia.  This  blue  corresponds  in  all 
respects  excepting  size  with  Pseudargiolus  proper 
of  the  south  ;  and  small  southern  individuals 
agree  altogether  with  large  northern  examples. 
Now  in  the  south  Pseudargiolus  has  been  reared 
from  violacea ;  but  here,  the  earlier  individuals 
must  be  the  offspring  of  Lucia,  or  the  entire 
brood  the  common  progeny  of  Lucia-violacea. 

As  we  go  still  farther  north,  the  spring  brood 
is  the  only  one  which  persists,  and  it  is  even 
made  up  entirely  of  the  earliest  New  England 
form,  viz.,  Lucia.  At  the  two  latitudinal  ex- 
tremes of  its  range,  therefore,  this  butterfly  ap- 
pears under  a  totally  different  aspect,  and  has  a 
different  history.  Without  a  study  of  their  ap- 
pearance and  history  in  intermediate  localities,  no 
naturalist  would  have  hesitated  to  class  them  as 
perfectly  distinct  species. 

In  addition  to  this  curious  polymorphism,  de- 


178  THE  COLORING  OF  BUTTERFLIES, 

pendent  upon  locality  and  season,  there  are  other 
minor  distinctions  that  appear  to  embrace  all 
localities  and  seasons.  As  we  go  from  north 
southward,  or  as,  in  any  given  locality  where  the 
insect  is  double-brooded,  the  season  advances,  we 
find  the  individuals  growing  larger,  less  heavily 
marked  beneath,  and,  in  the  female,  paler  on  the 
upper  surface. 

In  this  butterfly,  then,  we  have  a  curious  com- 
bination of  phenomena.  There  is  first  a  great 
difference  in  the  aspect  of  the  insect  in  widely 
separated  localities,  so  that  local  races  have  been 
described  as  distinct  species  ;  then  there  is  simple 
dimorphism  occurring  in  the  spring  brood  in  a 
central  locality,  but  not  at  the  two  extremes  ;  a 
simple  dimorphism  partaking  of  a  seasonal  char- 
acter, inasmuch  as  the  earlier  individuals  of  the 
affected  brood  are  of  one  form,  and  the  later  of 
another  ;  not  unlikely  it  will  be  proved  that,  as 
in  the  Zebra  Swallow-tail,  this  secondary  seasonal 
dimorphism  is  correlated  with  premature  hiber- 
nation of  some  spring  and  summer  chrysalids, 
and  that  the  spring  brood  as  a  whole  is  composed 
of  fragments  of  all  the  broods  of  the  previous 
year.  Besides  this  secondary  seasonal  dimor- 
phism, we  have  a  pure  seasonal  dimorphism,  in  the 
distinction  of  the  spring  and  summer  broods, 
wherever  more  than  one  exists  ;  and  finally,  in 
the  south  we  have  a  distinct  form  of  dimorphism 


WITH  FURTHER  HISTORIES.  179 

in  the  diverse  attire  of  different  individuals  among 
the  males  of  the  spring  brood,  a  form  of  sexual 
dimorphism  in  which  only  a  part  of  the  males 
partake.  To  the  varying  forms  of  this  kind  of 
dimorphism  attention  will  next  be  directed. 


CHAPTER  X. 

DIVERSITY  OF  THE   SEXES   IN    COLORING  AND   STRUCTURE. 

ANTIGENY,  signifying  opposition  or  antagonism 
of  the  sexes,  is  a  term  applied  to  what  might  also 
be  called  sexual  dimorphism,  and  embraces  all 
forms  of  secondary  sexual  diversity,  some  of 
which  will  now  be  considered. 

The  partial  form  of  sexual  dimorphism,  referred 
to  at  the  close  of  the  last  chapter,  or  an  antigeny 
affecting  only  a  portion  of  one  sex,  is  by  no 
means  rare  among  butterflies,  but  it  always 
assumes  one  of  two  aspects,  albinism  or  melan- 
ism ;  in  each  of  these  it  may  become  univer- 
sal and  therefore  complete.  In  high  temperate 
regions  albinic  antigeny  finds  its  most  complete 
expression  ;  toward  the  tropics  melanic  antigeny 
prevails  ;  and  in  accord  with  this  general  state- 
ment we  may  observe  that  in  the  butterfly  whose 
history  was  last  given  it  is  in  the  southern  part 
of  its  range  that  melanic  antigeny  makes  its  ap- 
pearance, that  is,  a  part  of  the  normally  blue 
males  become  brown. 

Another  instance  of  partial  melanic  antigeny 
may  be  seen  in  our  Tiger  Swallow-tail  [Fig.  153], 


182  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

whose  black  female  was  long  considered  a  distinct 
species  ;  and  it  was  not  until  search  was  made  for 
some  mate  to  match  it  that  suspicion  was  aroused. 
This  case  is  the  more  remarkable  from  its  being 
normally  a  gayly  banded  butterfly,  having  long 
black  stripes  on  a  bright  yellow  ground,  whereas 
in  the  melanic  female  the  yellow  is  quite  sup- 
planted by  the  black  ;  curiously  enough,  the  blue 
flecks  of  the  hind  wing  are  the  same  in  either 
form,  the  melanism  having  produced  no  effect 

upon  them  ;  very  rarely 
individuals  are  found  in 
which  the  yellow  and  black 
are  more  or  less  commin- 
gled, and  most  of  the  me- 


Fio.    154.-Atrytone   Zabulon,      lanic       fomiS      show 
female,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface 

faint  traces  of  the  stripes 

in  the  deeper  black  of  the  parts  normally  covered 
by  the  black  bands.  Now  the  home  of  this 
butterfly  stretches  from  Alaska  to  Florida,  but 
north  of  the  southern  boundary  of  JS"ew  York  or 
outs  not  a  black  female  can  be  found  ;  the 
parallel  in  this  respect  with  that  of  our 
little  blue  butterfly. 

We  have  again  a  dusky  skipper  (Atrytone 
Zabulon)  [Fig.  154],  not  very  uncommon  in  JSTew 
England,  and  still  more  common  farther  south,  to 
which  I  once  gave  the  name  of  Pocahontas  ;  for 
years  Pocahontas  sought  her  mate  in  vain,  until 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  183 

at  last  we  found  him,  united,  alas  !  to  another 
wife  ;  a  case  quite  like  that  of  the  swallow-tails 
just  described  ;  so  now  we  christen  this  twin- 
wived  species  the  Mormon. 

These  cases  might  be  multiplied,  but  we  will 
turn  rather  to  the  albinic  side.  As  far  as  I  am 
aware,  albinic  antigeny  occurs  only  in  one  group, 
the  red-horns  or  yellow  butterflies  (Fugacia) ;  but 
it  appears  there  in  several  genera.  In  ]N"ew  Eng- 
land it  is  conspicuous,  and  must  have  been  ob- 
served by  at  least  every  entomologist,  in  our  com- 
mon Clouded  Sulphur  [see  Figs.  102,  103].  Here 
all  the  females  differ  to  a  certain  extent  from  the 
males  ;  principally  in  having  the  marginal  black 
band,  which  is  sharply  defined  on  its  inner  side 
in  the  male,  ill-defined  and  broken  by  spots  of 
the  ground  color  in  the  female  ;  the  yellow,  too, 
is  invariably  somewhat  paler  and  duller  than  the 
clear  canary  of  the  male  ;  this  is  complete  anti- 
geny. But  there  is  also  partial  antigeny,  for 
an  albinic  form  occurs  in  which  the  yellow  is  al- 
together replaced  by  a  dead  dull  white  with  a 
greenish  tinge.  It  is  a  curious  fact  that  these 
pale  females  never  appear  in  the  early  spring 
brood,  and  increase  in  proportion  as  the  season 
advances.  This  is  in  harmonious  contrast  with 
the  occurrence  of  a  melanic  male  in  the  spring 
brood  of  the  azure  butterfly  ;  when  we  consider 
that  albinism  is  a  northern,  melanism  a  southern 


184  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

peculiarity,  we  should  anticipate  albinism  in  the 
cool,  melanism  in  the  hot  season. 

Albinic  antigeny  similar  to  that  of  our  Clouded 
Sulphur  may  be  seen  more  rarely  in  neighboring 
genera,  south  of  New  England  ;  it  is,  however, 
common  both  in  this  country  and  in  Europe  to 
nearly  all  the  species  of  the  genus  Eurymus,  and 
it  need  not  surprise  us  to  find  that  in  the  high 
north  and  at  great  altitudes,  species  occur  all 
whose  females  are  pale  ;  the  colorational  antigeny 
has  become  complete  instead  of  partial.  The 
same  is  the  case  with  the  melanic 
antigeny  in  many  blues ;  there  are 
exceedingly  few  species  which  have 
both  brown  and  blue  females ; 
but  brown  females  with  blue  males 
is  a  common  phenomenon  in  Eu- 

Nicippe,  nat.  size.  -,     •         ,-,  i      -i  _c         <» 

rope  and  in   the    western    half   of 
our  own  country. 

But  there  is  also  a  colorational  antigeny  quite 
apart  from  albinism  or  melanism,  which  may  be 
expressed  in  various  ways  ;  in  all  such  cases,  so 
far  as  I  know,  it  is  complete  ;  that  is,  all  the  in- 
dividuals of  one  sex  differ  from  all  the  individ- 
uals of  the  other.  Such  is  the  case  in  the  Black- 
bordered  Yellow  (Xanthidia  Mcippe)  [Fig.  155]. 
In  the  male  the  black  bordering  band  of  the  wing 
is  sharply  defined  and  extends  across  the  entire 
outer  margin.  In  the  female  the  band  is  blurred 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE. 


185 


and  stops   abruptly  before  it  reaches  the  lower 
angle  of  the  front  wings,  or  has  half  traversed  the 


PIG.  156. — Anaea  Andria,  male,  nat.  size  (Riley). 

hind  wings.     In  the  skipper  called  Thymelicus 
Brettus,  the  female  is  very  dark  brown,  almost 


FIG.  157.— Anaea  Andria,  female,  nat.  size  (Riley). 


black,  with  two  little  yellow  spots  in  the  middle 
of  the  front  wings  ;  while  the  male  differs  totally, 


186  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

being  tawny  with  indented  brown  borders  and  an 
oblique  black  dasli  in  the  middle  of  the  front 
wings  ;  at  first  glance  no  one  could  suppose  them 
identical.  In  the  Goat- weed  butterfly  [Figs.  156, 
157]  the  male  is  of  a  deep  coppery  red  above, 
bordered  with  dark  purplish  brown  and  blotched 
and  powdered  with  the  same  ;  the  female  differs 
in  being  of  a  lighter  color  throughout  and  in  hav- 
ing a  broad,  somewhat  irregular  belt  of  a  still 
lighter  tint  crossing  both  wings,  but  most  con- 
spicuous on  the  front  pair,  and  brought  into 
greater  relief  by  a  distinct  edging  of  blackish 
brown.  In  the  superb  fritillary  Diana  (Semno- 
psyche  Diana),  the  male  is  a  rich  dark  brown 
with  a  very  broad  fulvous  margin  upon  all  the 
wings,  marked  on  the  front  pair  by  one  or  two 
rows  of  small  black  spots.  The  female,  on  the 
other  hand,  is  a  rich  purple  black,  with  no  trace 
of  fulvous,  but  with  the  space  where  it  belongs 
occupied  on  the  front  wings  by  three  rows  of 
white  spots  and  dashes,  and  on  the  hind  wings  by 
two  belts  of  blue,  broken  into  spots,  one  of  the 
belts  narrow,  the  other  exceedingly  broad.  In  a 
related  butterfly  almost  equally  superb,  the  Regal 
Fritillary  (Speyeria  Idalia)  [Fig.  158],  the  spots 
of  the  outer  row  on  the  upper  side  of  the  hind 
wings  are  deep  orange  in  the  male,  pale  bluish 
white  in  the  female  ;  forming  a  striking  contrast. 
Again,  in  that  charming  hair-streak,  the  Spring 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  187 

Beauty  (Erora  laeta),  the  male  is  wholly  brown, 
with  a  border  of  deep  blue  on  a  portion  of  the 
hind  wings  :  while  in  the  female,  the  blue  has 
extended  so  as  to  cover  almost  all  the  hind  wings 
and  even  the  base  of  the  front  wings. 

But  it  is  in  the  coppers  [see  Figs.  105,  117]  that 
the  phenomenon  is  most  common.  Here  the  fe- 
males are  usually  of  a  fulvous  color,  heavily 


FIG.  158.— Speyeria  Idalia,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

spotted  with  black,  and  particularly  noticeable 
for  their  conspicuous  broad  dark  border  and  a 
row  of  spots  crossing  the  wings  beyond  the  mid- 
dle ;  while  the  males  are  either  of  some  dark 
brown  shade  or  of  a  coppery  fiery  hue,  almost 
always  without  any  border  or  conspicuous  spots. 
Now  in  all  cases  of  colorational  antigeny  it  is 
the  female  and  almost  never  the  male  which  first 
departs  from  the  normal  type  of  coloring  of  the 


188  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

group  to  which  the  species  belongs  ;*  occasionally, 
however,  this  feminine  peculiarity  has  been  trans- 
mitted to  the  male,  and  by  this  means  a  new  type 
of  coloration  established  in  the  group.  The  male 
of  butterflies  is  usually  colored  the  more  vividly 
and  conspicuously,  but  this  is  not  universal,  as 
the  case  of  the  coppers,  just  quoted,  may  show. 
But  I  have  seen  no  instance,  besides  that  of  the 
Spring  Azure,  where  the  male  alone  departs  from 
the  general  type  of  coloring  peculiar  to  the  group. 
This  is  precisely  the  opposite  conclusion  to  that 
which  Darwin  reached  in  his  discussion  of  sexual 
selection  in  butterflies.  He  gives  several  ex- 
amples, on  the  authority  of  Bates,  which  cer- 
tainly favor  his  conclusion,  but  may  at  the  same 
time  be  explained  from  the  opposite  point  of 
view.  He  gives  other  examples  from  the  Euro- 
pean blues,  which  not  only  do  not  support,  but 
even  oppose  his  general  statement  that  "  the 
male,  as  a  general  rule,  departs  most  from  the 
usual  type  of  coloring  of  the  group  to  which  the 
species  belong." 

Take  the  case  of  Diana,  than  which  we  could 
hardly  find  a  stronger,  since  the  group  to  which 
it  belongs  is  remarkably  uniform,  exhibiting  in 

*  A  single  exception  to  this  rule  among  our  butterflies  is  known 
to  me,  in  the  Spring  Azure  [see  Figs.  148,  149],  already  referred 
to,  in  which  it  is  the  male  and  not  the  female  which  is  sometimes 
brown  instead  of  blue,  the  normal  color  of  the  group. 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  189 

all  its  numerous  members  the  same  characteristic 
play  of  fulvous  and  black  markings.  The  male 
of  Diana  is  Indeed  very  unlike  most  other  fritil- 
laries,  but  it  retains  nevertheless  abundant  traces 
of  the  same  style  of  ornamentation  and  has  pre- 
cisely the  same  colors  ;  while  the  female  departs 
widely  from  the  characteristic  features  of  orna- 
mentation, and  in  addition  loses  every  trace  of 
fulvous,  so  that  no  one  at  first  glance  would  rec- 
ognize it  as  a  member  of  the  group. 

Take  again  our  common  Sulphur  Yellow  and  its 
allies  [see  Figs.  102,  103]  ;  in  some  species,  in- 
deed, there  are  only  pale  females  ;  but  in  others 
most  or  all  of  the  females  are  yellow  like  the 
males,  and  any  one  who  knows  how  yellow  and 
orange  tints  prevail  throughout  the  whole  group 
to  which  the  genus  Eurymus  belongs  will  ac- 
knowledge that  the  color  of  the  males  is  normal. 

So  too  with  the  blues,  which  Darwin  himself 
quotes  ;  almost  all  of  them,  males  and  females, 
are  of  some  shade  of  blue  ;  in  a  considerable  num- 
ber the  males  are  blue  and  the  females  brown  ;  in 
only  one,  so  far  as  I  know,  are  the  males  some- 
times brown  and  the  females  blue  ;  in  exceed- 
ingly few  both  sexes  are  brown  ;  and  the  very 
fact  that  they  are  familiarly  known  as  the 
' '  blues' '  is  a  popular  recognition  of  the  prevail- 
ing color. 

In  the  group  of  skippers  to  which  Brettus  be- 


190  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

longs  [Fig.  159  ;  see  also  Figs.  113-116,  etc.],  the 
prevailing  colors,  at  least  in  the  temperate  zone, 
are  certainly  tawny  and  black  or  brown,  the  lat- 
ter marginal ;  this  is  the  case  with  the  male  of 
Brettus,  while  the  female  diverges  from  the  type 
in  becoming  wholly  brown. 

In  the  Tiger  Swallow-tail  [see  Fig.  153],  where 
we  sometimes  have  a  black  female,  it  is  more 
difficult  to  decide  what  should  be  considered  the 
normal  color,  owing  to  diversity  of  view  upon  the 
relationship  of  many  of  the  swallow-tails  ;  but 
^4  jx*-  to  judge  only  from  those 

^^^tijjjri&jjSS  agreed  by  all  to  be  most  near- 
ly allied  to  it,  there  is  no 
question  whatever  that  the 

Jft&1JSti£ttfi  striPed  character  prevails. 

It  will  be  noticed  in  this 
case  and  others  I  have  given  that  wherever  partial 
antigeny  or  dimorphism  is  confined  to  one  sex,  it 
is  always  to  the  female  ;  and  I  am  not  aware  of  any 
exception  to  the  rule,  excepting  in  the  case  of  the 
Spring  Azure.  In  these  instances,  on  my  hypoth- 
esis, half  of  the  females  depart  from  the  type  ;  on 
Darwin's,  half  of  the  females  and  all  of  the  males. 
But  if,  on  Darwin's  theory,  sometimes  half  and 
sometimes  three-fourths  of  a  species  have  diverged 
from  the  type,  why  does  it  never  happen  that 
only  one-fourth  of  them  diverge  ?  This  seems  to 
me  a  very  pertinent  and  damaging  inquiry. 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  191 

The  instances  given  by  Darwin  which  strongly 
sustain  his  view  are  drawn  from  specimens  of  a 
South  American  genus,  Epicalia,  found  in  the 
rich  cabinet  of  Mr.  Bates,  who  travelled  so  long 
upon  the  Amazons.  The  facts  as  stated  are  these : 
There  are  twelve  species  of  the  genus  Epicalia  dis- 
cussed ;  of  these  nine  have  gaudy  males  and  plain 
females,  one  has  plain  male  and  plain  female,  and 
two  have  gaudy  males  and  gaudy  females.  The 
plain  females,  he  adds,  "  resemble  each  other  in 
their  general  type  of  coloration,  and  likewise  re- 
semble both  sexes  in  several  allied  genera  found 
in  various  parts  of  the  world."  To  examine  this 
case  fairly  would  need  a  large  collection  of  exotic 
butterflies.  If  we  confine  ourselves  to  Epicalia 
we  evidently  cannot  say  whether  the  gaudy  or  the 
plain  coloring  be  normal.  There  would  be  less 
variation  from  the  standard  on  the  supposition 
that  the  gaudy  were  the  normal  color  ;  and  in 
this  case  it  is  the  female  which  has  departed  from 
the  type  ;  but  the  difference  is  not  enough  to 
form  an  objection  ;  it  is  only  when  we  look  out- 
side of  Epicalia  that  judgment  seems  to  lean 
toward  Darwin's  side  ;  but,  from  the  total  want 
of  material,  I  cannot  fairly  discuss  the  point,  and 
can  certainly  see  no  flaw  in  his  argument. 

Take,  however,  a  case  which  appears  to  be 
somewhat  parallel,  our  native  coppers,  we  have 
one  species  in  which  both  sexes  are  fiery  red  [see 


192  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

Fig.  105]  marked  with,  black  ;  another  where 
both  are  fulvous,  marked  with  black ;  others 
where  both  sexes  are  brown,  and  several  where 
the  male  is  brown  marked  with  fulvous,  and  the 
female  fulvous  marked  with  brown  [see  Fig.  117] ; 
others,  again,  where  the  male  is  wholly  brown 
and  the  female  fulvous  spotted  with  brown  ;  and 
still  others  with  fiery  male  and  brown  female. 
We  have  nearly  every  possible  variation,  but  the 
prevalent  feature  is  a  dark  male  often  with  more 
or  less  metallic  reflections,  which  sometimes  in- 
crease so  as  to  give  the  insect  a  fiery  coppery  hue  ; 
and  a  fulvous  spot-ted  and  margined  female.  I  do 
not  see  how  we  can  discover  with  any  certainty 
from  within  the  limits  of  the  group  of  coppers, 
what  should  be  considered  the  normal  type  ;  nor 
are  we  much  better  off  in  an  examination  outside 
the  group  ;  there  the  prevailing  tint  is  either 
brown  or  blue  ;  but  I  am  inclined  to  think  that 
brown  tending  strongly  to  copper  should  be  con- 
sidered the  normal  type  ;  in  which  case  the  males 
are  generally  normal,  and  the  species  antigenic. 

But  sexual  dimorphism  is  not  confined  to  color 
or  pattern  ;  there  is  also  structural  as  well  as  col- 
orational  antigeny  ;  this  term  embraces  all  those 
minor  features  which,  in  these  and  other  animals, 
have  been  classed  as  accessory  sexual  peculiari- 
ties ;  in  general,  they  are  such  characteristics  as 
the  wattles  and  special  plumage  of  the  cock  and 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  193 

other  birds,  and,  in  direct  opposition  to  the  feat- 
ures we  have  been  discussing,  they  are  wholly 
confined  to  the  males. 

In  butterflies  structural  antigeny  is  mostly  con- 
fined to  the  wings  and  the  legs.  Sometimes  it 
affects  the  contour  of  the  wings  ;  one  of  the  most 
conspicuous  cases  among  our  own  butterflies  is  in 
the  Coral  Hair-streak  (Strymon  Titus),  where  the 
front  wings  of  the  male  have  a  pointed  tip,  and 
the  hind  wings  have  the  inner  angle  sharply  de- 
fined ;  while  in  the  female  both  the  tip  of  the 
front  wings  and  the  inner 
angles  of  the  hind  wings 
are  rounded.  Another 
maybe  seen  in  the  two  FIG.  m-veins  of  fore  wing  of 

Thecla  Calanus  ;   a,  male ;  6,  fe- 

emperor  butterflies  rep-  male  ?  nat.  size. 
resented  in  Figs.  182  and  184,  where,  besides 
minor  differences,  the  hind  wings  of  the  female 
are  full  and  rounded,  while  those  of  the  male  are 
angulate,  the  outer  margin  being  nearly  straight. 
Or  it  may  affect  the  direction  of  the  veins  of  the 
wings  ;  usually  the  difference  between  the  sexes 
is  slight  and  concerns  the  point  of  origin  of  one 
or  two  of  the  upper  branches  of  the  subcostal  vein 
of  the  front  wings  ;  but  occasionally  it  is  very 
marked,  as  in  many  of  the  hair-streaks  [Fig. 
160],  where  the  branches  of  the  subcostal  vein 
near  the  end  of  the  cell  are  thrown  far  out  of 
place  to  accommodate  a  patch  of  peculiar  crowded 


194  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

scales.  This  patch  itself,  moreover,  is  a  feature 
of  the  males  alone,  and  occurs  in  many  hair- 
streaks  where  the  position  of  the  vein  is  not 
altered. 

One  of  the  most  curious  patches  of  this  kind  is 
found  in  the  males  of  certain  yellow  butterflies, 
although  wholly  absent  from  others  intimately 
allied  to  them  ;  it  is  a  little  patch  of  lustreless 
scales  which  occurs  at  that  part  of  the  base  of  the 
hind  wings  which  is  always  covered  by  the 
front  wings,  so  that  it  is  quite 
concealed  from  sight. 

Patches  of  a  different  nature 
also  mark  the  male  sex  ;    thus 

the  costal  fold  opened ;  . ,  .  -.  -, ,  «     ,-,         -, 

nat.  size.  next  the  middle  of  the  lower 

median  vein  of  the  hind  wings  of  the  Monarch  [see 
Fig.  106],  and  in  some  of  its  allies,  we  have  a 
thickening  and  inversion  of  the  membrane,  con- 
spicuous from  its  covering  of  black  scales. 

In  very  many  males  of  the  larger  skippers 
(Hesperides)  the  front  edge  of  the  fore  wing  is 
abnormally  expanded  and  folded  compactly  upon 
the  upper  face  of  the  wing,  so  snugly  that  often 
it  can  be  only  discovered  with  the  lens  [Pig.  161]  ; 
moreover  the  scales  within  this  fold  have  turned 
to  white  silken  floss,  which,  when  the  fold  is 
raised,  contrasts  conspicuously  with  the  ordi- 
narily dark  surface  of  this  part  of  the  wing.  In 
certain  swallow-tails,  also,  the  inner  border  of  the 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE. 


195 


hind  wings  is  folded  over  in  a  similar  though 
looser  manner,  but  is  so  much  larger  that  when 
opened  it  often  exposes  a  white  downy  surface 
as  large  as  the  abdomen. 

Again,  there  is  much  variety  of  male  adornment 
in  special  modifications  of  hairs  or  scales  upon  the 
wings  ;  the  patch  of  the  hair- 
streaks,  just  mentioned,  is 
one  instance  of  this  ;  another 
example  is  found  among  the 
fritillaries  in  a  row  of  long 
fulvous,  partially  erect  hairs 
along  the  upper  edge  of  the 
cell  of  the  hind  wings  [Fig. 
162] ;  this  is  accompanied  by 
a  curious  apparent  thicken- 
ing of  the  veins  in  the  middle 
of  the  fore  wing,  due  alto- 
gether to  the  presence  of  a 
multitude  of  small  and  dense- 
ly clustered  black  scales 
crowded  against  the  veins  at 
this  point.  A  faint  oblique  patch  of  minute  and 
crowded  lustreless  scales,  accompanied  by  long 
silky  hairs,  is  often  seen  crossing  the  wings  of  some 
of  the  satyrs  or  meadow-browns  ;  but  this  feature 
finds  fullest  expression  in  the  group  of  smaller 
skippers  (Astyci),  where  a  large  proportion  of 
males  have  a  patch  or  oblique  dash  of  peculiar 


FIG.  162.— Wings  of  Argymris 
Cybele,  to  show  the  apparent 
thickening  of  some  of  the 
veins  of  the  fore  wing,  and  the 
row  of  hairs  near  base  of  hind 
wing;  nat.  size. 


196  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

scales  covering  veins  and  membrane  indiscrimi- 
nately, but  usually,  and  in  our  native  butterflies 
always,  occupying  the  middle  of  the  front  wing 
and  crossing  the  median  veins  obliquely  near  their 
base  [Fig.  163].  This  dash  is  variously  formed, 
but  the  scales  which  compose  it  are  usually  much 
larger  than  the  ordinary  scales,  are  black  and 
often  partially  erect ;  they  may  also  differ  in  vam 
ous  parts  of  the  patch  itself  and  alter  their  char- 
acter abruptly  ;  for  instance,  some  comparatively 
huge  and  brilliant  scales  may  occupy  the  middle 

line  and  be  buttressed  by 
a   multitude   of   minute 
crowded,      lustreless 
FIG.  i63.-ForewingofThymeii-    scales  ;  or  there  may  be 

cus    Aetna,    showing   the    oblique          ,  •     ,  /. 

patch  or  stigma  peculiar  to  the  at  One  point  a  SOrt  OI 
males,  X  2£.  .  . 

whirlpool  of  large  parti- 
colored scales,  set  at  all  angles  ;  next  it  similar 
scales,  imbricated  in  the  most  regular  fashion,  like 
the  normal  scales  ;  and  beyond  them  again  a  multi- 
tude of  the  minute,  crowded,  lustreless  scales  ; 
these  peculiarities,  however,  must  be  studied 
with  a  glass  ;  the  naked  eye  may  indeed  discover 
that  the  patch  differs  in  different  insects,  but  the 
general  effect,  in  all  alike,  is  a  variably  formed 
velvety  patch  or  oblique  streak  of  black. 

Before  leaving  the  wings,  I  will  call  attention 
to  one  striking  fact.  Wherever  antigeny,  colora- 
tioual  or  structural,  manifests  itself  in  the  wings 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  197 

of  butterflies,  the  differences  between  the  sexes 
almost  invariably  occur  upon  the  upper  surface, 
and  generally  upon  the  front  wing  only  ;  it  occa- 
sionally happens  that  there  is  a  slight  difference 
in  the  general  tone  of  color  on  the  under  surface 
of  both  sexes,  corresponding  to  what  appears 
above.  Diana  is  an  extreme  example  of  this  ; 
but  it  rarely  affects  the  markings  of  the  wings  ; 
these  are  invariably  similar,  almost  precisely  sim- 
ilar, in  both  sexes,  no  matter  what  marvellous 
pictures  nature  may  have  drawn  with  her  colors. 
The  differences  upon  the  upper  surface,  however, 
and  especially  upon  the  front  wings,  are,  as  we 
have  seen,  often  conspicuous  and  very  curious. 
It  is  hardly  necessary  to  call  attention  to  the  fact 
that  in  moths  the  markings  of  the  wings  are 
almost  entirely  confined  to  the  upper  surface,  and 
especially  to  that  of  the  front  wings,  which  in 
these  lower  groups  usually  cover  the  hind  wings 
when  in  repose.  This  subject,  however,  will  be 
more  fully  discussed  in  the  next  chapter. 

Sexual  dimorphism  shows  itself  in  the  legs  in 
the  proportional  length  of  the  different  pairs  in 
the  two  sexes,  in  the  special  development  of  cer- 
tain joints,  in  the  appendages  and  clothing.  The 
appendages  we  will  not  now  consider,  as  it  will  be 
necessary,  in  discussing  the  classification  of  butter- 
flies, to  enter  into  details  concerning  them  ;  and 
we  shall  then  point  out  how  striking  the  antigeny 


198  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

becomes.  As  to  the  differences  in  the  length  of 
the  leg-joints,  I  have  not  discovered  that  they  fol- 
low any  general  law,  although  there  are  few  of 
our  butterflies  whose  sexes  do  not  vary  in  this 
particular.  This  form  of  antigeny  is  most  con- 
spicuous in  the  Rurales,  the  family  which  in- 
cludes most  of  our  smaller  butterflies,  the  blues, 
coppers,  and  hair-streaks.  The  males  of  certain 
coppers  also  present  another  curious  feature  in  a 
tumid  swelling  of  the  basal  joint  of  the  middle 
and  hind  tarsi.  Finally,  the  front  legs  of  but- 
terflies are  frequently  furnished  with  a  spread- 
ing brush  of  hairs,  or  the  thighs  and  shanks  of 
the  other  legs  are  supplied  with  curious  pencils 
or  fringes  of  long  stiff  hairs,  which  appear  to  have 
much  the  same  significance  as  similar  adorn- 
ments in  higher  animals. 

Darwin  supposes  that  all  these  various  male 
appurtenances,  which  occur  throughout  the  animal 
kingdom,  such  as  cocks'  combs,  peacocks'  tails, 
and  other  paraphernalia  of  the  lords  of  creation, 
have  all  arisen  by  sexual  selection ;  that  one  of 
rival  males  being  selected  as  a  mate  whose  out- 
ward charms  are  greatest.  He  certainly  brings 
powerful  argument  and  a  strong  array  of  facts  to 
support  this  hypothesis.  But  what  then  shall  we 
say  of  the  following  illustration  of  sexual  anti- 
geny ;  namely,  the  presence  in  many  males 
among  butterflies,  but  in  no  females,  of  scales  of 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE. 


199 


the  most  exquisite  beauty  and  delicacy,  scattered 
among  the  more  common  sort,  and  invisible  to 
the  naked  eye.  Even  with  the  help  of  the  micro- 
scope they  can  often  only  be  discovered  by  ruf- 
fling the  plumage  and  forcibly  extracting  them 
from  their  concealment.  And  so  far  as  we  can  see 
they  rarely  give  the  wing  any  peculiar  character  by 
which  it  may  be  distinguished  from  other  wings. 

These  peculiar  scales,  or  an- 
droconia  as  they  may  be  termed, 
in  reference  to  their  masculine 
nature,  were  first  noticed  by  Ber- 
nard-Deschamps  more  than  forty 
years  ago,  but  have  never  been 
properly  studied  throughout  the 
butterflies.  Deschamps  called 
them  plumules  from  their  feathery 
tips  ;  but  this  term  is  utterly 
inappropriate  to  most  of  them  ; 
and 

only  some  word  expressing  their 
masculine  character  should  be  accepted,  since  this 
is  their  single  common  peculiarity. 

These  androconia  are  very  capricious  in  their 
occurrence  ;  a  number  of  allied  genera  may  pos- 
sess them,  while  a  single  genus,  as  closely  allied, 
may  be  quite  destitute.  This  is  true  throughout 
the  butterflies  ;  and  yet  there  are  large  groups  in 
which  they  are  altogether  wanting,  and  others  in 


FIG.  164.— Scales  of 

,  -,      .        „  .  .     -.      ,  Senmopsyche   Diana ; 

their    lOrin    IS    SO    Varied    that    a,    androconium ;     b, 

ordinary  scale  ;  X  285. 


200 


DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 


which  their  absence  is  extremely  rare.  In  the 
highest  butterflies  they  are  long,  slender,  and 
invariably  feathered  at  the 
tip  [Pig.  164].  In  one  small 
group  they  are  toothed  as 


a  "b 

FIG.  165— Scales  of  Pieris 
rapae ;  a,  androconium ;  &, 
ordinary  scale  ;  x  285. 


FIG.  166.— Scales  of  Leptotes 
Theonus  ;  a,  androconium  ; 
6,  ordinary  scale  ;  X  785. 


well  as  feathered.  With  the  exception  of  this 
small  group  they  may  be  dis- 
tinguished from  ordinary  scales 
by  the  absence  of  any  dentation 
at  the  tip.  In  the  whites  they 
are  fringed  [Fig.  165],  and  with 
a  single  known  exception  their 
extreme  base  is  expanded  into 
a  sort  of  bulb  ;  elsewhere,  even 
in  the  other  groups  of  the 
family  to  which  the  whites 


.belong,  they  are   not  fringed, 
but  have   a    smooth    rounded 
edge.    In  the  blues  they  assume 
a  battledore  or  fan-shape,  with  a  smooth  edge, 


FIG.  167.-Scales  of  Bre- 
phidium  Pea  ;  a,  androco- 
nium ;  b,  ordinary  scale  ; 
X  785. 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  201 

and  are  generally  beaded  and  more  heavily  striate 
than  the  scales  [Figs.  166,  167].  The  same  is  true, 
but  with  more  variations,  in  the  coppers  and  hair- 
streaks.  In  the  swallow-tails,  where  they  have 
been  supposed  to  be  wanting,  they  differ  very 
little  from  the  scales,  but  are  much  smaller  and 
more  coarsely  striate.  In  the  skippers,  where 


FIG.  168.— Scales  of  Thanaos  fnneralie,  X  285  ;  a,  one  of  the  large  riband- 
shaped  androconia,  the  striated  markings  of  which  are  excessively  delicate  and 
can  only  be  seen  when  magnified  more  than  500  times ;  b,  one  of  the  hair-like 
androconia  ;  c,  one  of  the  ordinary  scales. 

also  they  have  not  before  been  noticed,  they  pre- 
sent the  greatest  variety  in  the  same  individual ; 
in  one  group  there  are  hair-like  androconia  and 
others  which  are  exceedingly  large  and  riband- 
shaped  [Fig.  168];  in  the  other  group,  besides  hair- 
like  and  gigantic  androconia,  there  are  usually 
some  which  are  spoon-shaped  with  long  handles, 


202 


DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 


or  of  other  odd  shapes  [Figs.  169,  170].  As  a 
general  rule  these  androconia  are  present  in  the 
patches  to  which  we  have  alluded  as  forming  one 
phase  of  the  antigenic  characters  of  the  male  ;  but 
more  often,  as  in  the  blues  and  whites,  they  are 
scattered  indiscriminately,  or  in  rows,  over  the 
upper  surface  of  the  wings  ;  and  there  are  many 
patches,  like  those  at  the  base  of  the  hind  wings 

of  some  yellows  and  next 
the  median  vein  in  our 
Milk-weed  butterfly,  where 
androconia  are  not  found  ; 
they  do,  however,  some- 
times occur  in  patches  on 
the  hind  wings,  as  in  the 
fold  next  the  inner  margin 
of  the  swallow-tails  ;  but, 
with  the  exception  of  the 
discal  spot  of  the  hair- 
streaks,  they  seem  to  be 
present  in  all  patches 
found  on  the  front  wings,  occasionally  forming  the 
principal  part  of  such  patches,  as  in  many  yel- 
lows, and  again  taking  no  part  in  the  display. 
Take,  for  example,  the  fritillaries,  where  so  many 
small  black  scales  are  crowded  against  certain 
veins  as  to  give  them  a  thickened  appearance  [see 
Fig.  162] ;  the  androconia  are  also  present  in  great 
numbers,  but  entirely  concealed ;  only  by  remov- 


FIG.  169.— Scales  of  Limochores 
Taumas,  X  285  ;  a,  spoon-shaped 
androconium  ;  6,  large  thin  andro- 
conium ;  c,  ordinary  scale. 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE. 


203 


ing  the  scales  can  even  the  tassels  of  their  long  and 
slender  blades  be  seen.  Perhaps  even  more  curi- 
ous than  this  is  the  arrangement  by  which  all  the 


Fro.  170.—  Scales  of  Thymelicus  Aetna,  X  285  ;  a,  club-shaped  androconium; 
b,  gigantic  spindle-shaped  androconium  ;  c,  ordinary  scale. 


androconia  of  the  swallow-tails  and  of  one  large 
group  of  skippers  are  tightly  inclosed  in  the  fold 
of  the  membrane  to  which  reference  was  made.  It 


204  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES 

is  not  impossible  that  this  fold  can  be  opened  at 
will  by  the  insect,  although  I  can  hardly  under- 
stand how  it  can  be  done  in  the  skippers  ;  and  it 
would  then  become  conspicuous  and  probably  an 
attraction  to  the  butterfly's  mate.  But  what  pos- 
sible advantage  can  there  be  in  partially  or  wholly 
concealed  androconia,  scattered  separately  over 
the  wing  ?  In  some  blues  they  are  exceedingly 
scarce,  numbering  not  more  than  one  to  a  hundred 
scales,  and  the  exposed  surface  of  this  not  one 
tenth  that  of  the  scales  about  it.  One  might 
search  an  hour  with  the  microscope  over  an  un- 
ruffled wing  and  overlook  it.  Remember,  too, 
that  it  is  the  merest  speck  of  dust  in  a  dust-heap. 
Does  the  sight  of  these  creatures  surpass  our 
power  of  vision  with  the  microscope  ?  The  theory 
of  sexual  selection,  proposed  by  Darwin,  appears 
to  fail  here,  just  where  it  should  most  aid  us  ;  and 
it  seems  as  if  we  should  be  forced  to  conclude  that 
there  is  a  principle  underlying  these  phenomena 
which  may  yet  be  found  to  cover  both  them  and 
those  which  have  been  used  in  support  of  the  in- 
genious hypothesis  of  Darwin — a  law  of  variation 
for  its  own  sake.* 

*  Since  this  was  written,  Fritz  Miiller  has  in  various  places  de- 
clared these  androconia  to  be  scent- scales  (Duftsehuppen),  having 
an  odor  presumably  attractive  to  their  consorts.  That  the  males 
of  many  butterflies  exhale  odors  has  long  been  known  ;  it  is  very 
marked  in  our  Mountain  Silver-spot  (Argynriis  Atlantis),  which 


IN  COLORING  AND  STRUCTURE.  205 

We  find,  then,  that  antigeny  or  sexual  dimor- 
phism is  of  two  kinds,  colorational  and  struc- 
tural ;  that  the  former  is  confined  to  the  female, 
as  the  latter  is  to  the  male  sex.  Going  a  little 
farther,  we  may  observe  that  the  features  by 
which  females  diverge  from  their  type  are  those 
upon  which  specific  differences  are  founded ; 
while  those  which  distinguish  the  males  are  gen- 
erally such  as  we  employ  in  characterizing 
genera.  If  species  originate  by  the  gradual  di- 
vergence of  variations  once  established,  and  if 
we  concede,  as  by  our  argument  we  should,  that 
the  special  characteristics  of  males  and  females 
in  butterflies  are  among  the  most  pliable,  we 
should  expect  to  find  that  the  females  of  different 
species  of  the  same  genus,  as  well  as  of  allied 
genera,  agree  together  much  more  closely  than 
the  males.  This  we  do  find  ;  and  nowhere  is  it 

has  a  musky  smell,  even  perceptible  long  after  death.  But  the 
location  of  the  scent  organs  has  never  been  properly  attempted  ; 
it  is  idle  to  suppose  that  in  so  small  a  creature  one  may  fix  the 
region  of  the  body  where  they  belong  by  such  rude  tefctsas  merely 
smelling  of  various  parts,  as  Fritz  Miiller  and  his  family  have 
done.  Until  the  odor  is  found  to  be  confined  to  the  wings  after  these 
have  been  detached  from  the  body  and  separately  tested,  all  analogy 
leads  to  the  belief  that  they  will  be  found  upon  the  body  proper 
of  the  insects,  and  probably  near  the  hinder  extremity  of  the  ab- 
dnmen.  It  should  also  be  added  that  the  attractiveness  of  the 
odor  to  the  opposite  sex  has  never  been  proven,  and  that  some 
caterpillars,  such  as  that  of  our  White-spotted  Skipper  (Epar- 
gyreus  Tityrus),  have  a  distinct  musky  odor. 


206  DIVERSITY  OF  THE  SEXES. 

more  striking  than  in  the  skippers,  where  anti- 
geny  of  a  remarkable  kind,  and  especially  struc- 
tural antigeny,  is  almost  universal. 

When  this  chapter  was  written,  it  was  my  pur- 
pose to  discuss  still  another  element  of  permanent 
variation,  affecting  in  a  very  striking  manner  the 
color  of  butterflies,  and  to  a  certain  degree  their 
form,  namely,  Mimicry  ;  but  this  must  be  deferred 
to  another  occasion,  with  the  mere  mention  that 
there  are  proofs  of  the  action  of  this  force,  even 
among  our  native  butterflies.  One  of  them  in 
particular,  the  Viceroy  [see  Fig.  84],  of  which 
mention  has  often  been  made,  departs  altogether 
from  its  nearest  allies  to  mimic  the  attire  of 
another  butterfly,  the  Monarch  [see  Fig.  106],  dif- 
fering widely  in  structure.  But  without  entering 
into  details  upon  this  point,  I  trust  I  have  already 
accomplished  my  purpose  in  showing  that  there 
is  something  more  than  mere  external  beauty  in 
the  color,  design,  and  infinite  variety  of  markings 
which  make  the  butterfly  the  common  type  of  all 
that  is  exquisite  in  nature. 


CHAPTEE  XL 

THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT   OF  ORNAMENTATION. 

DOUBTLESS  every  one  is  aware  that  the  patterns 
on  the  painted  wings  of  butterflies  are  a  sort  of 
mosaic,  formed  by  tiny  colored  scales,  which  by 
varied  combinations  make  the  most  exquisite  de- 
signs. The  very  regular  arrangement  of  these 
scales  may  be  less  generally  known  ;  for  though 
mere  specks  they  overlie  one  another  as  slates  on 
a  roof  ;  and  just  as  figures  made  by  the  oblique 
arrangement  of  colored  slates  appear  from  a  dis- 
tance to  have  straight  and  not  serrate  borders  ; 
so,  through  the  minuteness  of  the  scales,  mark- 
ings on  a  butterfly's  wing,  which  really  have  rag- 
ged edges,  appear  perfectly  uniform. 

From  this  peculiarity  of  wing  adornment  a 
whole  order  of  insects,  including  those  popularly 
known  as  moths,  millers,  hawk  or  humming-bird 
moths  and  butterflies,  was  named  by  Linne  Lepi- 
doptera — scaly- wings.  As  a  general,  but  by  no 
means  universal,  rule,  the  lowest  of  these  insects 
fly  by  night,  those  which  hold  a  middle  rank  by 
twilight,  while  the  highest  fly  almost  exclusively 
by  day.  Many  of  the  night  or  twilight  species 


208  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

rest  by  day  in  exposed  situations,  and  then  cover 
the  hind  wings  with  the  front  pair,  and  often  the 
abdomen  by  both  ;  in  such  insects  the  upper 
surfaces  of  the  front  wings  are  marked  with  varie- 
gated patterns,  while  the  hind  wings  and  the 
under  surfaces  of  both  pairs  are  usually  of  a  uni- 
form brown  color.  Even  upon  the  upper  surface 
of  the  front  wings  the  tints  are  usually  very 
sombre,  bright  colors  being  exceptional  among  the 
moths  ;  while  in  the  lowest  tribes  there  are  many 
examples  of  almost  uniform  drab  or  brown  color- 
ing throughout.  To  this  last  statement,  however, 
many  exceptions  could  be  given  of  insects  with 
front  wings  pictured  with  variegated  designs  of 
such  excessive  minuteness  that  their  real  beauty 
can  be  appreciated  only  when  the  surface  is  mag- 
nified. So,  too,  in  the  large  family  of  Phalaeni- 
dae,  or  gometrids,  we  have  moths  which  often  fly 
by  day,  and  rest  with  all  their  wings  fully  ex- 
panded ;  and  here  the  hind  wings  are  ornamented 
like  the  front  pair. 

It  is,  however,  only  when  we  come  to  the  but- 
terflies, the  highest  Lepidoptera,  that  we  find,  as 
a  general  rule,  all  the  wings  and  both  surfaces 
highly  ornamented.  Even  within  this  group  we 
may  see  differences  corresponding  to  their  relative 
perfection  of  structure  ;  for  in  the  lowest  family 
sombre  colors  prevail,  and  in  very  many  instances 
the  under  surface  is  almost  uniform  in  tint ; 


OF  ORNAMENTA  TION.  209 

while,  with  the  sole  exception  of  those  butterflies 
known  as  Swallow-tails  (a  highly  specialized  type 
of  low  organization),  the  most  variegated  and  ex- 
quisite patterns  are  to  be  found  in  the  highest 
families,  and  are  far  more  generally  distributed 
among  them. 

I  am  not  aware  that  such  a  direct  relation  be- 
tween beauty  and  rank  has  been  pointed  out  in 
other  groups  of  the  animal  kingdom.  There  can 
be  no  question  of  its  existence  here,  and  in  an 
order  of  animals  at  once  a  synonym  for  all  that  is 
delicate  and  exquisite  it  is  what  should  be  ex- 
pected on  the  theory  that  the  lower  represent 
earlier  and  the  higher  later  forms  developed  from 
a  common  stock.  That  complicated  or  variegated 
patterns  of  coloring  must  have  had  their  source 
in  simpler  and  less  varied  designs,  and  these  in 
slight  variations  from  an  absolutely  uniform  tone 
of  color  will  not  be  denied  by  any  who  believe  in 
the  evolution  of  complicated  structural  forms 
from  those  of  simpler  organization  ;  and  must  be 
regarded  as  possible  if  not  probable  by  all  who 
study  the  past  life  of  the  globe  and  see  the  march 
of  life,  with  its  constant  tendencies  to  differentia- 
tion, reaching  its  climax  in  its  latest  and  most 
complex  product,  man. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that,  as  far  as  the 
direct  influence  of  physical  agencies  is  concerned, 
we  are  dealing  here  with  a  class  of  acts  very  dif- 


210  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

ferent  from  those  we  meet  in  discussing  the  orna- 
mentation of  vertebrated  animals.  In  birds  and 
quadrupeds,  the  feathers,  hair,  and  other  dermal 
appendages  have  developed  to  maturity  and  even 
wasted  and  been  replenished  under  all  the  vicissi- 
tudes to  which  animal  life  is  exposed  during  a 
period  of  several  years.  In  butterflies,  on  the 
contrary,  the  ornamentation  we  are  considering 
is  confined  to  the  brief  final  epoch  of  life,  there  is 
no  replenishing  of  the  scale-tissue,  and  the  scales 
are  formed  rapidly  and  once  for  all,  at  a  definite 
period,  viz.,  immediately  upon  the  change  from 
larva  to  pupa ;  and  being  then  concealed  from 
light  and  excesses  of  temperature  within  a  thick 
integument,  and  often  also  behind  the  walls  of  a 
dark  chamber  of  silk,  vegetable  fibres,  or  earth, 
they  are  as  far  removed  as  possible  from  external 
agencies.  In  the  depths  of  this  retreat  the  scales,  in- 
cluding all  the  pigment  of  the  wings,  are  complete- 
ly developed,  the  insect  appearing  full-fledged  and 
perfectly  caparisoned,  subject  to  no  further  change. 
Nevertheless,  the  general  phenomena  of  orna- 
mentation in  vertebrates  are  so  exactly  repeated 
in  butterflies  that  no  one  can  plausibly  claim  that 
these  phenomena  originate,  in  the  two  groups,  in 
distinct  proximate  causes.  The  same  relation  of 
color  to  locality  which  has  been  so  well  brought 
out  by  Mr.  Allen*  reappears  in  butterflies,  as  I 

*  In  various  papers  upon  our  native  birds  and  mammals. 


OF  ORNAMENTA  TION.  211 

shall  presently  mention.  It  would,  therefore, 
seem  not  unlikely  that  we  shall  be  forced  to  dis- 
card the  idea  of  direct  physical  causation  in  the 
one  case  as  in  the  other.  This  thesis,  however,  it 
is  not  my  purpose  here  to  maintain.  I  merely 
wish  to  draw  attention  to  the  point  before  pro- 
ceeding to  discuss  the  origin  and  development  of 
ornamentation  in  butterflies. 

I  have  seen  only  a  single  attempt  to  trace  the 
origin  of  the  color-patterns  of  butterflies  by  the 
light  of  modern  ideas.  This  was  the  subject  of  a 
short  article  by  Rev.  Mr.  Higgins,  published 
some  years  ago  in  the  Quarterly  Journal  of 
Science.  This  writer  maintains  that  what  he 
terms  the  primary  or  fundamental  pattern  was  a 
"  pale  ground  with  darker  linear  markings  fol- 
lowing the  course  of  the  veins  ;"  and  he  explains 
its  origin  from  the  earliest  monochromatic  wing, 
by  supposing  that  "  the  scales  growing  on  the 
membrane  upon  or  near  the  veins  would  be  dis- 
tinguished from  the  scales  growing  on  other  parts 
of  the  membrane  by  a  freer  development  of  pig- 
mentary matter"  within  them.  From  this  simple 
form  of  linear  markings  he  would  derive  all  those 
patterns  which  bear  definite  relations  to  the  veins, 
such  as  the  dark  bands  which  cross  them  at  an 
angle  and  are  scalloped  between  each  pair  ;  thus 
he  says  :  "  a  portion  of  the  dark  scales  begin  to 
diverge  on  each  side  from  the  veins,"  and  "  the 


212  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

dark  lines  thus  formed  will  meet  in  the  middle  of 
the  areas  between  the  veins,  producing  a  band  of 
scallops."  But  all  the  lighter-colored  and  more 
brilliant  spots  he  would  derive  from  modifications 
in  the  extent  and  intensity  of  the  ground-color, 
or,  as  he  afterward  terms  it,  the  "  blush." 

It  will  hardly  be  worth  while  to  follow  his  line 
of  argument ;  for,  plausible  and  simple  as  this 
hypothesis  appears  at  first  glance,  it  is  unsatisfac- 
tory. An  examination  of  an  extensive  series  of 
specimens  and  illustrations  convinces  me  that  an 
even  simpler  explanation  can  be  given,  in  which 
the  darker  and  lighter  markings  have  a  common 
origin.  Moreover  there  are  definite  objections  to 
Mr.  Higgins'  theory.  Its  basis,  that  the  scales 
next  the  veins  would  have  a  freer  development  of 
pigmentary  matter  within  them,  although  per- 
haps true,  is  a  pure  assumption,  to  support  which 
no  facts  are  given.  His  observations  are  drawn 
wholly  from  butterflies,  with  no  reference  to  the 
ornamentation  of  moths,  which  naturally  would 
give  some  clue  to  the  previous  simpler  condition 
of  butterflies,  and  finally,  if  the  earliest  form  of 
ornamentation  were  linear  markings  on  a  pale 
ground,  from  which  the  scalloped  bands  were  de- 
rived, we  ought  now  to  find,  as  one  form  of  varia- 
tion, transverse  series  of  dark  spots  seated  on  the 
veins  ;  actually,  however,  while  transverse  series 
of  dark  spots  are,  next  to  cross-bands,  the  very 


OF  ORNAMENTA  TION.  213 

commonest  pattern  in  Lepidoptera,  I  do  not  know 
of  a  single  instance  in  butterflies,  and  only  one  or 
two  in  moths,  where  such  spots  are  seated  upon 
the  veins,  excepting  only  such  as  occur  at  the  ex- 
treme margin  ;  such  spots,  in  the  body  of  the 
wing,  are  invariably  placed  in  the  interspaces 
between  the  longitudinal  veins.  The  mode  of  de- 
velopment "of  eye-like  spots,  which  Darwin  has 
shown  to  be  extremely  simple,  is  also  opposed  to 
Mr.  Higgins'  theory,  since  these  have  their  origin 
in  a  simple  dark  point  in  the  interspaces,  and  yet 
give  rise  to  some  of  the  most  brilliant  colors  pos- 
sessed by  butterflies. 

We  can  hardly  hope  to  obtain  a  rational  ex- 
planation of  the  origin  and  development  of  orna- 
mentation in  butterflies  without  studying  the 
color-patterns  of  the  lower  members  of  the  same 
order.  This  should  be  our  starting-point,  since 
the  mode  in  which  the  scales  originate  in  the  in- 
dividual precludes,  I  conceive,  all  hope  of  assist- 
ance from  anatomical  or  embryological  study. 
We  have,  indeed,  an  especial  advantage  in  study- 
ing the  numerous  living  types  of  moths,  from  the 
fact  that,  as  far  as  the  hind  wings  are  concerned, 
all  differentiation  in  coloring  has  been  greatly  re- 
tarded by  their  almost  universal  concealment  by 
day  beneath  the  overlapping  front  wings.  In 
such  hind  wings  we  find  that  the  simplest  depart- 
ure from  uniformity  consists  in  a  deepening  of 


214  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

the  tint  next  the  outer  margin  of  the  wing  ;  next 
we  have  an  intensification  of  the  deeper  tint  along 
a  line  parallel  to  the  margin  ;  it  is  but  a  step 
from  this  condition  to  a  distinct  line  or  band  of 
dark  color  parallel  to  the  margin.  Or  the  mar- 
ginal shade  may,  in  a  similar  way,  break  up  into 
two  or  more  transverse  and  parallel  submarginal 
lines,  a  very  common  style  of  ornamentation, 
especially  in  moths.  Or,  again,  starting  with  the 
marginal  shade,  this  may  send  shoots  or  tongues 
of  dark  color  a  short  distance  toward  the  base, 
giving  a  serrate  inner  border  to  the  marginal 
shade  ;  when  now  this  breaks  up  into  one,  two,  or 
more  lines  or  narrow  stripes,  these  stripes  become 
zigzag,  or  the  inner  ones  may  be  zigzag,  while 
the  outer  are  plain — a  very  common  phenom- 
enon. 

A  basis  such  as  this  is  sufficient  to  account  for 
all  the  modifications  of  simple  transverse  mark- 
ings which  adorn  the  wings  of  Lepidoptera,  and 
explains  why,  amid  all  the  profound  modifica- 
tions the  color  patterns  have  undergone,  the  trans- 
verse style  of  markings  holds  a  fundamental  posi- 
tion ;  and  why  such  markings  are  far  more  prev- 
alent on  the  outer  than  on  the  basal  half  of  the 
wing,  and  are  also  so  frequently  scalloped.  All 
the  steps  of  this  process,  as  I  have  explained  it, 
apply  equally  well  to  the  front  wing,  excepting 
that  we  cannot  there  so  well  trace  the  initial  step 


OF  ORNAMENTATION.  215 

in  the  differentiation  of  the  primordial  uniform 
coloring. 

To  carry  this  theory  another  step  :  By  the 
breaking  up  of  any  one  or  more  of  these  bands 
into  spots  or  bars,  we  may  conceive  two  new 
forms  of  pattern  according  as  the  break  occurs  in 
the  interspaces  or  at  the  veins.  In  the  former 
case,  the  tendency  of  dark  scales  to  cluster  along 
interruptions  of  any  nature  in  the  surface, 
whether  veins,  folds,  creases,  or  margins,  to- 
gether with  the  concentrating  force  presumed  in 
a  rupture  of  the  band,  will  be  sure  to  cause  the 
scales  to  collect  along  the  veins,  and,  uniting 
with  similar  spots  upon  them,  to  border  the  vein 
on  either  side  continuously.  This  will  map  the 
veins  very  distinctly  upon  the  ground,  producing 
in  fact  that  condition  of  things  which  Mr.  Higgins 
considers  the  primary  pattern,  but  which,  cer- 
tainly, we  rarely  find  in  moths  and  not  very  com- 
monly in  the  highest  butterflies.  Indeed,  when 
carried  to  an  extreme,  as  in  the  dark- veined  in- 
sects with  otherwise  diaphanous  wings,  we  find  it 
only  in  some  of  the  very  highest  moths  (Aegerians 
and  Sesiadae)  or  butterflies  (Heliconians).  The 
junction  of  these  darkened  veins  with  the  darkened 
border  of  the  wings  produces,  I  suppose,  the 
series  of  spots  upon  the  tips  of  the  veins  which 
sometimes  occur  there,  but,  as  already  stated,  on 
no  other  part  of  the  veins. 


216  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  the  break  be  supposed  to 
occur  at  the  veins  themselves,  then  the  tendency 
would  be  to  form  short  transverse  bars,  or  quadrate 
or  more  or  less  rounded  spots  in  the  interspaces  ; 
and,  finally,  by  a  differentiation  of  the  exterior 
and  interior  portions  of  a  round  spot,  a  more 
or  less  perfect  ocellus  would  be  formed.  Occa- 
sionally we  find  long  streaks  of  dark  color  down 
the  middle  of  the  interspaces,  similar  to  those 
along  the  veins,  produced,  no  doubt,  by  the  fre- 
quent presence  of  a  crease  in  such  places,  and  the 
tendency  of  scales  to  follow  it ;  the  comparative 
weakness  of  such  breaks  in  the  continuity  of  the 
membrane  is  the  reason  of  the  comparative  rarity 
of  this  form  of  ornamentation.  The  formation  of 
ocelli  has  been  shown  by  Darwin,  who  traced,  in 
specimens  of  a  South  African  butterfly  (Cyllo 
Leda)  a  perfect  gradation  "  from  excessively  mi- 
nute white  dots,  surrounded  by  a  scarcely  visible 
black  line,  into  perfectly  symmetrical  and  large 
ocelli ;"  and  instances  are  common  in  our  own 
butterflies  where  one  can  follow  a  similar  series 
onward  from  a  uniform  circular  dark  spot.  First, 
a  central  white  dot  appears  in  it ;  next  the  whole 
is  encircled  by  a  light-colored  halo,  and  so  on. 
Darwin  mentions  one  moth  with  a  magnificent 
ocellus  consisting  of  a  black  centre  with  eight 
concentric  zones  of  colors. 

Ocelli  not  infrequently  surpass  the  bounds  of 


OF  ORN AMENTA  TION.  217 

the  interspace  in  which  they  originate,  but  among 
the  hundreds  of  ocellate  specimens  examined 
with  this  point  in  view,  I  have  failed  to  find  a 
single  ocellus  of  a  simple  character  which  could 
not  be  definitely  referred  to  some  particular  in- 
terspace. But  there  are  other  ocelli,  of  a  complex 
character,  such  as  those  of  the  Peacock  butterfly 
of  Europe  (Hamadryas  lo),  where,  assuming  it 
had  a  similar  origin,  we  cannot  possibly  say 
where  it  belongs  ;  but  in  this  butterfly,  the  other 
markings  of  the  wing  are  seen  directly  through 
the  ocelli,  as  through  a  veil ;  and  I  believe  they 
can  be  shown  to  have  arisen  in  an  entirely  differ- 
ent way,  by  an  alteration  in  the  relative  position 
of  certain  bars  and  spots  common  to  butterflies  of 
this  group.  No  doubt  all  other  complex  ocelli, 
such  as  those  with  spiral  annuli,  could  be  shown, 
upon  special  study,  to  have  originated  in  some 
similar  manner. 

After  reaching  such  a  stage  of  complication, 
and  assuming  the  known  tendency  to  suffusion  of 
markings  in  butterflies,  that  is  the  blending  of 
neighboring  spots,  we  may  easily  see  that,  by  the 
amalgamation  of  adjoining  spots  in  different 
transverse  rows,  every  conceivable  pattern  can  be 
explained.  There  is  nothing  left  to  consider  but 
the  diversity  in  color  itself ;  and  observation 
shows  that  although  there  are  prevailing  tints  as 
well  as  prevailing  patterns  in  special  groups  of 


218  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

butterflies,  that  nevertheless  these  colors  are  often 
very  pliable ;  for  instance  white,  yellow,  and 
orange  are  readily  interchangeable  ;  and  a  similar 
reciprocal  relation  exists  between  orange  and  red, 
or  between  certain  tones  of  yellow  and  brown. 

Again,  when  we  compare  individuals  of  the 
same  species,  especially  if  of  opposite  sexes,  the 
great  difference  between  them  in  the  profusion 
with  which  scales  of  metallic  blue  are  sprinkled 
upon  a  normal  dark  ground  shows  how  easily 
black  or  dark  brown  is  replaced  by  metallic 
blue  ;  the  latter  again  is  readily  interchange- 
able with  metallic  green,  or  with  purple  or  or- 
dinary blue  or  green.  Some  instances  of  this 
interchangeability  must  be  given  farther  on,  and 
it  is  not  therefore  worth  while  to  dilate  upon  it 
here.  It  should,  however,  be  stated  that  the  iri- 
descence on  the  wings  of  many  butterflies  is  of  an 
entirely  different  nature,  being  due  to  a  micro- 
scopic striation  of  the  outer  surface  of  the  scales. 

The  hypothesis,  then,  of  the  origin  and  devel- 
opment of  color-patterns  in  butterflies  which  I 
would  maintain  is  based  upon  the  scale  of  compli- 
cation seen  in  the  markings  of  living  Lepidoptera, 
and  the  prevalence  among  them  of  certain  special 
patterns.  According  to  it,  the  wings  first  showed 
signs  of  divergence  from  uniformity  by  a  deepen- 
ing of  the  color  next  the  outer  margin,  which 
thereafter  became  separated  into  distinct  trans- 


OF  ORN AMENTA  TION.  219 

verse  bands  ;  these  bands,  in  breaking  up,  gave 
rise  to  dark- veined  or  to  spotted  wings,  which 
served  as  the  basis  for  all  the  variegated  patterns 
of  the  present  day,  including  ocelli,  which  are 
only  specialized  forms  of  simple  interspacial 
spots. 

This  discussion  leads  naturally  to  the  consider- 
ation of  the  intimate  connection  between  the 
color-patterns  and  the  frame- work  of  the  wings  in 
Lepidoptera  ;  this  relation,  indeed,  must  be  con- 
sidered one  of  the  most  important  features  in 
the  topography  of  the  wings,  if  I  may  use  the  ex- 
pression. It  is  seen  with  the  first  appearance  of 
ornamentation,  in  the  wavy  outline  of  the  trans- 
verse bands,  each  wave  corresponding  to  the  posi- 
tion of  the  adjacent  veins.  It  is  still  more  con- 
spicuous when  these  bands  break  up  into  bars  or 
spots.  But  its  full  force  is  shown  when  the  pat- 
terns become,  most  complicated,  where,  indeed, 
we  should  naturally  expect  that  ornamentation 
would  be  least  restrained  by  such  limitations. 
The  rod-like  veins  of  the  wing  are  often  com- 
pletely concealed  beneath  the  downy  covering  of 
scales,  and  yet  there  is  scarcely  a  spot  in  the  wing 
of  any  butterfly  whose  precise  position  is  not 
fixed  by  the  nearest  veins.  This,  however,  is  a 
very  imperfect  statement  of  the  facts  ;  to  con- 
sider them  fairly  we  must  recall  the  general  struc- 
ture of  the  wings  in  butterflies.  These  consist, 


220  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

as  explained  more  fully  on  an  earlier  page,  of  a 
thin  double  membrane  supported  by  tubular  rods, 
which  extend  between  them  and  diverge  some- 
what like  the  rods  of  a  fan.  In  butterflies,  the 
number  and  distribution  of  the  main  rods  or  veins 
are  essentially  the  same  in  the  front  and  hind 
wings,  although  the  wings  themselves  differ 
greatly  in  shape.  Omitting  details,  there  is  a 
single  unbranched  vein  in  front  and  another  be- 
hind ;  while  between  these  are  two  others,  both 
branched,  of  which  the  front  one  (the  second  vein 
of  the  wing)  throws  out  branches  on  both  sides 
and  the  other  only  behind.  This  distribution  of 
the  veins  may,  for  our  purpose,  be  considered  as 
dividing  the  wing  longitudinally  into  four  sepa- 
rate areas,  each  occupied  by  a  distinct  vein  with 
its  branches.  The  principal  difference  between 
the  two  wings  is  found  in  the  branches  of  the 
second  vein ;  in  the  front  wing  the  anterior 
branches  are  numerous  and  most  of  them  run  to 
the  front  border  of  the  wing  ;  this  arrangement  is 
plainly  for  greater  strength,  the  front  edge  of  the 
fore  wings  having  to  bear  the  brunt  of  flight , 
while  the  front  edge  of  the  hind  pair  requires  no 
such  special  provision,  these  wings  in  flight  being 
practically  a  part  of  the  front  pair  ;  and  they 
therefore  have  only  a  single  front  branch  to  the 
second  vein  terminating  on  the  outer  margin. 
Notwithstanding  these  great  differences,  but  in 


OF  ORNAMENTA  TION. 

harmony  with  the  fundamental  idea  in  articulated 
animals  that  similar  parts  on  successive  rings 
should  have  similar  structure,  the  markings  of 
the  two  wings  harmonize  even  to  a  greater  extent 
than  appears  at  first  glance  ;  for  although  there 
is  a  distinct  tendency  toward  symmetrical  repeti- 
tion of  markings  upon  the  front  and  hind  wings 
of  a  butterfly,  this  symmetry  is  not  absolute, 
being  subordinated  to  the  distribution  of  the 
veins,  and  this  again  to  the  diverse  needs  of  the 
two  wings.  The  distributions  of  spots  on  these 
wings  may  therefore  appear  very  different,  when 
in  reality  they  hold  the  same  position  on  either, 
relative  to  the  structure. 

The  number  of  instances  in  which  similar  mark- 
ings appear  in  the  same  areas  of  the  two  wings, 
and  in  the  same  relative  position  in  those  areas, 
is  far  too  common  to  be  a  mere  coincidence  ;  it  is 
most  readily  traced  in  the  disposition  of  ocelli, 
which  are  very  apt  to  be  similar  in  size  and  per- 
fection and  to  be  situated  between  the  same 
branches  of  homologous  veins.  As  one  of  a  thou- 
sand examples  of  this  kind,  the  Peacock  butterfly 
may  again  be  cited.  On  the  front  wing  of  all  the 
butterflies  of  this  type,  the  basis  for  a  complex 
ocellus  exists,  as  already  remarked,  in  the  dispo- 
sition of  the  bars  and  colored  patches  in  the  sub- 
costal area,  or  the  area  of  the  second  vein  ;  in  the 
Peacock  butterfly  such  an  ocellus  is  formed  and 


222  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

extends  to  the  front  margin  of  the  wing,  because 
the  subcostal  area  reaches  that  margin.  On  the 
hind  wings  of  these  butterflies  almost  the  only 
element  for  the  formation  of  an  ocellus  is  a  short 
bar  in  the  same  area  resembling  one  on  the  front 
wings  ;  yet  from  this  a  complex  ocellus,  not  so 
imposing  as  that  of  the  front  wings  certainly,  but 
still  a  marked  ocellus,  has  been  formed  ;  which, 
true  to  law,  just  fails  of  reaching  the  front  mar- 
gin, keeping  within  the  normally  narrower  limits 
of  the  subcostal  area  of  the  hind  wing. 

This  distribution  of  the  veins  enables  us  also  to 
point  out  an  interesting  relation  between  the  orna- 
mentation of  the  front  and  hinder  portion  of  a 
single  wing,  which  seems  never  to  have  been 
noticed,  and  which  shows  again  both  the  strength 
and  the  weakness  of  symmetry.  The  relation  of  the 
ornamentation  of  the  hind  to  the  fore  wing  is  not 
one  of  slavish  repetition  ;  indeed  our  ingenuity 
may  often  be  taxed  to  discover  it.  But  the  rela- 
tion of  the  two  parts  of  the  same  wing  has  even 
less  of  repetition  ;  for  to  a  certain  extent  there  is 
a  polar  distribution  of  markings.  For  instance, 
there  is  often  a  bright-colored  ocellus  at  the  inner 
angle  of  the  hind  wing,  in  the  area  of  the  fourth 
principal  vein  ;  should  a  single  similar  ocellus,  or 
a  bright-colored  spot  corresponding  to  it,  occur  in 
any  other  part  of  the  wing,  there  is  only  one 
place  where  it  will  fall,  viz.,  at  an  exactly  cor- 


OF  ORNAMENTA  TION.  223 

responding  position  in  the  area  of  the  first  (i.e., 
the  other  unbranched)  vein  of  the  wing.  I  do 
not  mean  there  will  be  a  corresponding  spot,  for 
one  often  occurs  in  one  of  these  positions  and 
fails  in  the  other  ;  nor  that  there  may  not  be  sim- 
ilar spots  in  all  the  areas  ;  but  that  if  there  is  a 
brilliant  spot  in  the  area  of  the  fourth  vein,  and 
only  one  other  similar  spot  elsewhere,  the  latter 
will  fall  in  the  area  of  the  first  vein.  This  is  the 
more  curious,  because  I  do  not  discover  the  same 
polarity  in  the  repetition  of  markings  in  the  areas 
of  the  branching  veins  ;  here  repetition  is  fre- 
quent, but  it  is  far  more  common  to  find  similar 
markings  between  the  hinder  branches  of  the  one 
and  of  the  other,  or  between  their  front  branches. 
Can  such  a  play  of  plan  in  ornamentation, 
affecting  more  than  our  mere  sense  of  beauty, 
awakening  indeed  in  us  an  intellectual  pleasure 
which  does  not  rest  upon  the  surface  of  things  as 
a  purely  sensuous  appreciation  must  do — can 
this  be  explained  as  purely  for  the  purposes  of 
the  ephemeral  creature  itself  ?  If  it  cannot ;  if, 
for  instance,  it  is  of  no  advantage  to  the  butterfly 
that  its  second  brilliant  ocellus  should  occur  in 
the  area  of  the  first  rather  than  of  the  second 
vein,  then  it  cannot  have  arisen  through  natural 
selection,  without  the  guidance  of  a  higher  law, 
which  has  other  ends  for  beauty  than  the  mere 
survival  of  the  creature  possessing  it. 


224  THE  ORIGIN  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

The  relation  of  the  markings  to  the  areas  is  still 
further  shown  in  a  curious  way.  Transverse 
markings,  as  has  been  said,  are  a  predominating 
feature  of  butterfly  ornamentation.  If  in  the 
transverse  markings  of  the  outer  part  of  the  wing, 
there  is  a  break,  a  sudden  shift  of  direction,  a 
removal,  perhaps,  of  a  fragment  of  a  band  to  one 
side  ;  such  a  change  invariably  takes  place,  I 
believe,  at  the  line  of  demarcation  between  the 
areas,  or  at  one  of  the  immediately  adjacent 
veins  ;  never  within  the  limits  proper  of  any  one 
area.  On  the  front  wings  of  the  lowest  butter- 
flies we  frequently  find  a  submarginal  band  of 
spots,  of  which  one  or  two  are  situated  in  the 
space  between  the  adjacent  branches  of  the  sec- 
ond and  third  veins.  The  continuity  of  this 
otherwise  uniform  band  is  almost  always  broken 
by  the  shifting  of  these  particular  spots  a  little 
toward  the  margin  of  the  wing.  This  is  a  single 
instance  of  which  very  many  could  be  given. 

It  will  be  seen  then  that  the  relation  of  the 
markings  of  the  wing  to  the  disposition  of  the 
underlying  framework  is  an  important  one,  and 
actually  seems  to  increase  in  importance  with  the 
complexity  of  the  ornamentation  ;  so  that  the 
study  of  the  diversity  of  patterns  becomes  an  in- 
tellectual pleasure.  Indeed  my  first  appreciation 
of  .this  relation  arose  from  the  necessity  of  describ- 
ing these  markings  in  professional  work  ;  it  was 


OF  ORNAMENT  A  TION.  225 

not  until  the  minute  examination  which  this  re- 
quired had  forced  it  upon  me  that  I  learned  how 
subservient  is  ornamentation  to  the  requirements 
of  structure,  or  how  much  reflex  light  was  thrown 
by  mere  color  patterns  upon  the  very  plan  of 
structure  itself. 

In  all  that  has  been  said  I  have  only  attempted 
to  trace  the  probable  lines  along  which  ornamen- 
tation increased  in  complexity.  Causes  I  have 
purposely  left  in  the  background,  although  I 
have  here  and  there  intimated  that  I  do  not  be- 
lieve change  is  wholly  due  either  to  the  action  of 
physical  agencies  or  to  natural  selection.  That 
each  of  these  forces  has  borne  its  part  in  the 
work,  there  can,  I  think,  be  little  doubt ;  but  in 
a  case  like  this,  where  we  find  beauty  of  the  most 
exquisite  and  refined  character  in  creatures  of  an 
inherently  low  organization,  I  can  only  express  a 
deep-seated  conviction  that  a  preordaining  pur- 
pose and  plan  governs  these  proximate  causes, 
and  that  beneath  both  structure  and  beauty  we 
may  discern  far-reaching  and  controlling  thought.  , 


CHAPTEE  XII. 

ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 

IN  the  history  of  human  life  nothing  is  more 
apparent  than  that  individuals  are  born  and 
perish,  while  families  survive  ;  families  die  out, 
while  nations  continue  to  exist ;  nations  also 
have  their  limits,  and  mankind  outlives  them. 

It  is  the  same  in  the  past  history  of  life  in  gen- 
eral, revealed  to  us  in  the  stony  book  of  nature. 
Species  come  and  go,  while  genera  still  maintain 
their  ground  ;  and,  in  their  various  times,  genera, 
families,  and  orders  of  animals  appear  and  disap- 
pear, while  the  groups  higher  than  they  outlive 
them.  From  this  it  follows  that  the  existing 
members  of  any  group  are  but  the  merest  frag- 
ment of  its  true  whole  ;  and  yet  it  is  in  large 
measure  from  this  fragment  that  we  must  deduce 
the  true  character  and  relations  of  the  group,  as 
well  as  its  past  history.  Nowhere  is  this  more  con- 
spicuous than  in  the  butterflies.  There  are  prob- 
ably at  least  ten  thousand  species  now  living ; 
countless  myriads  must  have  enlivened  the  face  of 
nature  in  past  ages  ;  yet  only  a  dozen  have  been 
found  in  a  fossil  state  ;  and  these  fossil  remains 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION.  227 

are  so  recent  in  geologic  time,  and  so  similar  in 
structure  to  existing  forms,  that  we  only  seem  to 
be  carrying  the  present  state  of  things  a  stage  or 
two  farther  back,  and  becoming  no  wiser  than  be- 
fore concerning  the  ancestry  of  the  group. 

Since,  then,  palaeontology  refuses  her  aid,  we 
must  look  within  the  limits  of  the  group  itself 
for  indications  of  its  past  history.  In  the  New 
Zoology,  classification  and  ancestry  go  hand  in 
hand  ;  it  is  only  as  present  structure  gives  us  n 
clue  to  past  history  that  it  possesses  much  inter- 
est ;  and  habit  and  modes  of  life  have  such  close 
connection  with  structure  that  they  bear  willing 
testimony  where  formerly  they  were  debarred  a 
hearing.  Our  classifications  are  only  expressions 
of  confessedly  imperfect  attempts  to  represent  the 
natural  affinities  of  animals,  and  natural  affinity 
is  but  another  term  for  blood  relationship,  more 
or  less  remote.  It  is  therefore  impossible,  in 
these  days,  to  consider  classification  without 
assuming  as  a  postulate  that  it  is  a  present  ex- 
pression of  a  past  history  ;  and  in  that  light  no 
single  feature  is  wanting  in  interest.  In  fact, 
nothing  in  nature  is  without  its  meaning,  its  con- 
nection with  the  past ;  and  though  in  itself  alone 
we  may  despise  a  senseless  stupid  fact,  yet  when 
it  is  placed  beside  others,  with  which  it  has  har- 
monious relations,  it  becomes  fruitful  in  meaning. 

One  of  the  most  striking  things  we  meet  in 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 

studying  the  natural  history  of  insects  is  the  curi- 
ous character  of  their  metamorphoses.  Those  of 
butterflies  are  perhaps  as  complete  as  any,  and 
differ  widely  from  the  transformations  of  the 
lower  insects,  grasshoppers  for  example,  where 
the  young  animal  is  born  with  a  very  close  resem- 
blance to  its  parent.  Has  this  disparity  between 
the  different  tribes  of  insects  always  existed,  since 
insects  were  \  Or  if  not,  what  was  the  nature 
of  the  changes  undergone  by  the  primitive  insect 
during  its  existence  ?  And  what  have  been  the 
steps  by  which  the  passage  has  been  made  from 
homogeneous  to  dissimilar  metamorphoses  \  Since 
the  history  of  life  everywhere  shows  continuous 
progress  from  a  simple  to  a  complex  condition,  it 
may  be  presumed  that  the  more  uniform  meta- 
morphoses of  the  grasshopper  have  preceded  the 
more  complicated  changes  we  have  discussed  in 
butterflies.  But  is  there  in  the  present  structure 
of  these  insects  any  evidence  of  such  a  presump- 
tion ?  The  differences  themselves  between  the  cat- 
erpillar, chrysalis,  and  imago  of  the  butterfly  we 
have  given  in  detail.  The  only  distinction  of  im- 
portance between  the  young  and  fully  grown  grass- 
hopper, on  the  other  hand,  lies  in  the  absence,  in 
the  former,  of  wings.  These  are  assumed  during 
growth,  and  so  gradually  that  it  has  been  asserted 
there  are  no  distinctive  larval  and  pupal  stages, 
as  in  insects  generally.  This,  however,  is  a  mis- 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION.  229 

take ;  the  principal  difference,  so  far  as  the 
wings  are  concerned,  between  the  early  stages 
of  the  grasshopper  and  of  the  butterfly,  is  that 
in  the  former  they  are  external  appendages  of 
the  integument,  in  the  latter  internal  (although 
morphologically  external) ;  in  the  pupal  stage 
they  are  external  in  both,  and  the  branching 
vessels  that  penetrate  them  then  first  assume  a 
definite  position,  corresponding  closely  with  the 
direction  of  the  veins  which  appear  in  the  perfect 
insects.  It  is  plain  that  external  wing-pads  would 
greatly  inconvenience  a  soft  caterpillar,  while 
they  are  of  no  disadvantage  whatever  to  the 
young  grasshopper ;  and  that  if  the  caterpillar 
state  of  the  butterfly  formerly  resembled  the 
grasshopper  larva,  the  removal  of  the  wings  from 
the  exterior  to  the  interior  of  the  body  would  be 
a  natural  step  in  the  progress  of  the  changes 
which  have  culminated  in  its  present  condi- 
tion. 

In  the  lower  insects,  like  grasshoppers,  there 
are  throughout  life  breathing  pores  on  all  the 
thoracic  segments,  even  on  those  which  bear 
wings.  In  the  butterfly  they  are  absent  from 
the  segments  which  bear  wings,  both  in  the  cater- 
pillar and  in  the  imago.  In  both  these  stages, 
however,  as  has  been  stated,  these  segments  bear 
a  distinct  tuft  of  tracheae  next  to  the  natural 
position  of  a  spiracle,  which  can  have  no  other 


230  ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION. 

meaning  than  that  the  ancestors  of  butterflies  had 
spiracles  on  these  segments,  as  grasshoppers  do 
to-day.  Moreover  this  original  condition  is  less 
aborted  in  the  caterpillar  than  in  the  butterfly, 
for  false  spiracles  sometimes  do  occur  in  the  larvae 
of  the  lower  Lepidoptera  as  well  as  slender  tubes 
connecting  them  with  the  tracheal  tufts  ;  and  this 
is  exactly  what  we  should  expect,  since  the  abor- 
tion of  these  parts  is  evidently  connected  with 
greater  adaptability  of  the  wings  to  their  purpose  ; 
in  fact  they  are  aborted  in  the  caterpillar  only  to 
prepare  for  a  more  completely  rudimentary  con- 
dition in  the  perfect  butterfly. 

There  is  another  feature  in  the  early  stages  of 
a  butterfly' s  life  which  still  more  strikingly  re- 
calls the  primitive  condition  of  its  metamor- 
phoses. One  important  difference  between  the 
lives  of  grasshoppers  and  butterflies  is  that  the 
pupal  stage  of  the  former  is  active,  while  that  of 
the  latter  is  quiescent.  In  a  previous  chapter  at- 
tention was  called  to  the  ocellar  riband  of  the  but- 
terfly chrysalis  [see  Fig.  53],  an  organ  which  bore 
no  special  relation  to  the  parts  beneath,  was  par- 
tially covered  by  the  folded  antennae,  and  which 
possessed  no  significance  whatever  unless  it  had 
once  been  useful,  presuming  in  its  possessor  an 
active  life.  Examine  the  eye  of  a  grasshopper 
just  from  the  egg  and  one  will  find  its  surface 
closely  studded  with  low  rounded  prominences, 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION.  231 

arranged  in  regular  rows  like  the  surface  of  the 
ocellar  riband  in  the  butterfly  chrysalis  ;  while  in 
the  perfect  stage  of  both  these  prominences  have 
crowded  together,  met,  and  therefore  assumed  a 
hexagonal  outline.  This  condition  of  the  eye  in 
the  chrysalis,  immature,  yet  at  present  altogether 
unnecessary  and  superficial,  and  partly  concealed 
by  another  organ,  clearly  points  to  an  earlier 
stage  of  usefulness,  when  it  was  in  direct  connec- 
tion with  the  underlying  parts,  and  when  the 
organs  now  concealing  a  portion  of  it  were  ex- 
tended and  free,  that  is,  an  active  pupal  stage. 
But  activity  in  the  pupal  stage  implies  something 
more  ;  such  differences  as  now  obtain  between 
the  mouth-parts  of  the  caterpillar  and  of  the 
imago  require  a  period  of  inactivity  for  their 
alteration  :  but  if  no  such  period  existed,  there 
must  have  been  similarity  of  mouth-parts  in  the 
archaic  caterpillar  and  imago.  Was  it  then  a 
biting  or  a  sucking  insect  ?  We  find  nothing  in 
the  present  structure  of  the  group  which  answers 
this  question,  but  is  it  not  possible  that  the  insect 
may  have  possessed  a  mouth,  such  as  Lubbock 
describes  in  certain  low  insects,  which  was  neither 
distinctly  biting  nor  sucking,  but  of  "  a  peculiar 
type,  capable  of  modification  in  either  direction 
without  loss  of  utility"  ?  Or,  as  Darwin  writes 
with  regard  to  insects  in  general,  we  have  only  to 
suppose  "  an  upper  lip,  mandibles,  and  two  pair 


232  ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION. 

of  maxillae,  these  parts  being  very  simple  in 
form  :  and  then  natural  selection  will  account  for 
the  infinite  diversity  in  the  structure  and  func- 
tions" of  the  mouth  in  all  insects.  If,  however, 
we  were  to  choose  between  biting  and  sucking, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  former  is  the  more 
primitive  condition,  since  insects  existed  before 
tubular  flowers. 

We  may  then  consider  it  probable  that  the 
metamorphoses  of  the  ancient  butterfly  were  of 
a  very  simple  nature,  and  that  the  present  alter- 
ations of  form,  structure,  and  life  have  been  grad- 
ually induced.  We  have  seen,  even  in  the  exist- 
ing species,  striking  variations  in  form,  color,  and 
period  of  appearance  ;  and  in  the  divergence  of 
the  present  metamorphoses  from  those  of  the 
past  we  have  a  signal  proof  of  the  same  tendency 
to  variation,  and  of  the  magnitude  which  it  may 
attain  ;  in  their  earliest  stages  these  variations 
were  probably  confined  to  individuals,  but  gradu- 
ally, by  accretion  and  persistence,  were  impressed 
upon  the  group.  We  may  even  see  proofs  of  the 
continued  action  of  this  tendency  to  change,  of 
the  unstable  equilibrium  of  the  present  condition 
of  things,  of  the  pliability  of  structure  and  modes 
of  development,  in  a  hypermetamorphosis,  as  it 
may  be  called,  which  caterpillars  undergo.  The 
extremities  of  the  series  of  transformations  in 
butterflies  are  complete  ;  nothing  can  be  simpler 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA SSIFICA  TION.  233 

than  some  butterfly  eggs;  no  defect  nor  unful- 
filled purpose  can  be  conceived  in  any  of  the 
organs  of  the  butterfly.  So  too  in  the  changes 
from  caterpillar  to  butterfly,  what  could  more  com- 
pletely accomplish  its  end  than  the  chrysalis  ;  it 
is  a  perfect  mummy.  Only  in  the  caterpillar  is 
there  any  opportunity  for  additional  change. 
The  first  step  toward  the  formation  of  a  new 
stage  I  believe  may  be  seen  in  the  differences  in 
the  appendages  of  immature  and  of  full-grown 
caterpillars,  described  on  an  earlier  page.  I 
have  not  yet  ascertained  any  common  feature  by 
which  the  peculiarities  of  the  earliest  stage  of 
caterpillars  may  be  contrasted  with  those  of  later 
stages,  unless  it  be  the  comparative  length  of  the 
appendages.  But  certainly  no  caterpillar  has 
been  examined  which  does  not  show  between 
these  stages  differences  in  form,  in  the  relation  of 
parts,  or  in  the  disposition  and  character  of  the 
appendages,  greater  than  occur  between  caterpil- 
lars of  different  tribes.  While  if  we  go  outside 
the  families  of  butterflies  we  shall  find  here  and 
there  conspicuous  examples  of  this  tendency  to 
hypermetamorphosis,  which  the  mere  mention 
of  the  young  larva  of  Meloe  and  Sitaris  will  recall 
to  the  mind  of  any  entomologist.  All  these  I 
conceive  to  be  examples  of  the  present  working  of 
the  same  law,  which  from  simple  transformations 
like  those  of  our  grasshoppers  and  plant  bugs 


234  ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 

has  produced  the  extraordinary  metamorphoses 
of  the  butterfly. 

Let  me  here  call  attention  to  the  various  paths 
through  which  new  forms  of  butterflies  may 
spring  from  previously  existing  species.  For  be- 
sides those  which  butterflies  follow  in  common 
with  all  animals,  there  are  many,  which,  if  not 
peculiar  to  them,  are,  at  least  so  far  as  known, 
more  conspicuous  in  this  group.  Ordinary  varia- 
tion, due  to  unknown  or  diverse  causes,  as  well  as 
that  which  springs  from  latitudinal  range  and 
distinct  climatic  influence,  appears  in  butterflies 
as  in  other  creatures.  In  these  cases  we  suppose 
advantageous  variations  to  be  perpetuated  and 
intensified  by  the  survival  of  the  fittest,  through 
the  law  of  inheritance.  In  this  way,  by  slow 
accretions,  a  species  multiplies  into  varieties,  each 
departing  from  the  other  and  from  the  original 
type,  until  all  become  firmly  fixed  as  species, 
again  to  undergo  division.  Now  just  as  the 
climatic  influences  of  latitude  appear  to  be  an 
important  factor  in  the  development  of  new 
forms,  so  the  difference  of  the  seasons  may  work 
similar  alterations  in  double-brooded  butterflies  ; 
we  have  merely  to  suppose  the  Zebra  Swallow- 
tail to  hibernate  exclusively  in  the  imago  state, 
to  fix  the  variety  Marcellus  as  the  only  form  that 
will  survive  ;  on  the  other  hand,  let  the  insect 
hibernate  as  now  in  the  chrysalis  and  be  only 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION.  235 

single-brooded,  and  the  variety  Marcellus  would 
become  extinct ;  suppose  again  both  features  to 
hold  with  different  sets  of  individuals,  gradually 
communicating  this  tendency  in  greater  and 
greater  force  to  their  offspring,  and  we  should 
behold  the  spring  and  summer  varieties  changed 
to  separate  species.  This  is  one  example  of  a  mode 
in  which  seasonal  dimorphism  may  become  an 
originator  of  new  forms.  It  is  plain  that  entirely 
similar  results  may  follow  from  unequal  lethargy 
in  one  brood  of  caterpillars,  such  as  have  been 
referred  to  in  some  of  the  fritillaries.  In  one  in- 
stance we  saw  reason  to  believe  that  there  were 
two  series  of  individuals  in  a  single  species,  more 
or  less  independent,  and  with  a  distinct  cycle  of 
changes  ;  very  slight  differences  have  been  found 
between  the  individuals  belonging  to  these  two 
series  ;  but  with  complete  independence  we  may 
be  sure  that  these  differences  would  intensify,  and 
distinct  species  be  formed. 

Ordinary  dimorphism  again,  or  the  appearance 
of  different  varieties  in  each  brood,  running 
through  both  sexes,  must  surely  be  a  precursor  of 
a  division  in  the  species  ;  no  doubt  the  change  is 
gradual,  so  that  centuries  of  direct  experimenta- 
tion would  throw  no  light  upon  the  change  ;  but 
we  have  only  to  suppose  each  form  breeding  true 
to  itself  and  the  separation  will  be  accomplished. 
In  the  case  of  the  Yiolet-tip,  we  have  two  strik- 


236  ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION. 

ingly  different  forms,  which  may  be  distin- 
guished, not  only  by  their  coloring  and  markings, 
but  even  by  the  form  of  the  wings  and  the  sculp- 
ture of  the  hard  parts  of  the  abdomen  ;  in  fact, 
we  have  two  forms,  permanently  distinct  from 
each  other,  to  which  we  cannot  apply  the  name 
of  species  simply  because  we  know  they  have  the 
same  immediate  parentage  ;  we  can  hardly  doubt 
that  the  separation  of  this  species  is  nearly  ac- 
complished. 

The  same  may  be  affirmed  of  antigeny  ;  we  find 
melanic  antigeny  both  partial  and  complete  ;  in 
its  partial  condition  in  our  Spring  Azure  it  grows 
more  and  more  nearly  perfect  as  we  pass  south- 
ward ;  we  see  its  form  fixed  in  some  species,  and 
in  others  the  melanic  feature  has  been  superin- 
duced upon  the  male.  The  same  is  true  of  struc- 
tural antigeny.  Some  species,  which  we  can 
hardly  doubt  have  had  a  common  ancestor, 
scarcely  differ  from  each  other  excepting  in  the 
character  of  their  antigenic  peculiarities,  and  this 
accounts  for  the  close  resemblance  of  the  females 
of  allied  species  of  skippers.  Origin  through 
antigeny  probably  occurs  with  other  animals, 
but  in  butterflies  it  must  be  unusually  common. 
So  too  with  mimicry.  The  Viceroy  and  the 
Red-spotted  Purple  are  nearly  identical  in  all 
their  earlier  stages,  and  yet  utterly  diverse  in 
the  perfect  butterfly  ;  both  must  have  sprung 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TlOtf.  237 

from  a  common  source,  from  which  the  Vice- 
roy has  diverged  through  mimicry  in  its  final 
stage. 

These  are  only  a  few  examples,  but  sufficient 
to  show  in  how  many  ways  butterflies  may  vary 
and  how  these  variations  may  be  appropriated  for 
the  development  of  species  ;  the  distinctions  be- 
coming gradually  intensified  into  complete  and 
permanent  diversity.  This  is  natural  selection. 
And  by  the  avidity  with  which  natural  selection 
seizes  every  possible  variation  to  produce  new 
forms,  one  would  fairly  suppose  that  its  constant 
action  would  lead  to  endless  variety.  And  if  on 
this  theory  we  should  maintain  that  all  existing 
forms  of  animal  life  have  sprung  from  a  few  origi- 
nal sources,  then  we  may  fairly  conclude  that  nat- 
ural selection,  by  itself  alone,  would  also  lead  to 
inextricable  confusion,  through  which  it  would  be 
impossible  now  to  trace  one  thread  of  harmony. 
That  it  is  not  so,  that  the  groupings  and  relations 
of  structure  among  animals  are  clear  to  the  human 
mind,  that  they  present  an  orderly  arrangement 
and  a  harmonious  intercombination,  which  ap- 
peals to  his  reason,  is  sufficient  proof  that  natural 
selection,  in  all  its  wondrous  and  pervading 
power,  acts  under  law,  a  law  of  evolution,  which 
is  no  slave  to  the  forces  of  nature,  but  brings  them 
into  subservience  to  its  ends,  a  law  which  is 
working  out  the  plans  of  a  Supreme  Intelligence, 


238  ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 

by  ways  which  man  may  apprehend,  but  has  not 
yet  comprehended. 

Let  ns  now  return  to  this  question  of  classifica- 
tion, in  considering  which  we  had  only  ascer- 
tained the  probable  development  of  butterflies 
from  creatures  similar  in  transformation  to  our 
grasshoppers,  and  inquire  how  they  are  related  to 
other  Lepidoptera.  The  more  complicated  struc- 
ture, the  more  finished  ornamentation,  the  more 
complete  and  open  metamorphoses,  and  the  diur- 
nal life  of  butterflies  place  them  at  once  higher 
than  the  moths,  a  position  which  has  been  uni- 
versally accorded,  and  upon  which  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  linger.  Let  me  simply  mention  one  char- 
acteristic, first  noticed  by  Agassiz  ;  namely,  that 
the  downward  sloping  position  of  the  wings, 
almost  universally  assumed  by  moths  when  at 
rest,  is  very  different  from  the  erect  position 
which  the  wings  of  butterflies  then  assume  ;  and 
that  the  former  resembles  the  position  of  the 
wings  in  the  pupal  state,  while  the  latter  differs 
widely. 

We  will  attempt  to  draw  a  picture  of  the  pri- 
meval butterfly  when  it  has  so  far  advanced  in 
structure  toward  the  tribes  at  present  existing 
that  it  is  fairly  butterfly  and  not  moth.  This 
original  form  must  have  possessed  not  only  most 
of  the  features  of  the  lowest  family,  but  also,  in  a 
nascent  condition  as  it  were,  all  or  nearly  all  the 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLASSIFICA  TION.  239 

characters  now  common  to  the  group,  or  which 
exist  under  some  modified  form  in  this  or  that 
offshoot,  such  special  peculiarities  being  subse- 
quent, more  individualized  developments  of  the 
ancestral  type. 

With  this  clue,  a  careful  study  of  the  structure 
of  each  stage  will  give  a  result  not  far  removed 
from  the  following. 

The  egg  was  globular,  with  flattened  base,  its 
surface  nearly  smooth,  but  covered  with  faint  re- 
ticulations, growing  more  minute  next  the  micro- 
pyle,  which  formed  a  series  of  five  to  seven  kite- 
shaped  cells  arranged  symmetrically  around  a 
common  centre. 

The  caterpillar  had  a  large,  smooth,  rounded 
head,  a  body  composed  of  thirteen  segments, 
nearly  uniform  in  size,  the  first  bearing  above  a 
chitinous  shield,  the  first  three  a  pair  of  horny 
legs,  the  sixth  to  the  ninth  and  the  last  segments 
a  pair  of  fleshy  legs,  spiracles  upon  all  the  seg- 
ments except  the  last  two,  but  those  of  the  second 
and  third  in  a  very  rudimentary  condition,  so  as 
to  be  physiologically  useless.  The  surface  of  the 
body  was  covered  profusely  with  little  papillae, 
from  each  of  which  sprung  a  minute  simple  hair. 
The  new-born  caterpillar,  however,  differed  per- 
haps in  this  respect  from  the  full-grown,  in  that 
its  body  was  furnished  with  short  club-shaped 
hairs  arranged  in  dorsal,  pleuro -dorsal,  and  sub- 


240  ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 

stigmatal  series,  there  being  two  appendages  to  a 
segment  in  the  lower  series,  and  one  to  a  segment 
in  the  others.  In  short,  hypermetamorphosis 
was  already  established  in  a  simple  condition. 

So,  too,  metamorphosis  was  complete,  and  the 
chrysalis  a  perfect  mummy  with  ensheathed 
limbs,  its  contours  smooth,  the  head  rounded,  the 
ventral  outline  of  the  abdomen  as  curved  as  the 
dorsal,  and  the  tail  somewhat  pointed  ;  it  was 
protected  by  a  slight  cocoon,  and  probably  also 
secured  within,  in  a  definite  position,  by  attach- 
ment at  the  tail  and  a  girt  around  the  middle. 

The  butterfly  was  heavy -bodied  and  covered 
with  scales  and  hairs.  The  head  was  broad,  the 
antennae  did  not  encroach  upon  the  eyes  and  were 
moderately  long  and  clubbed  at  the  tip  ;  the  club 
was  about  three  times  longer  than  broad  and 
curved  at  the  base,  but  not  hooked  at  the  tip  ; 
the  tongue  was  about  as  long  as  the  body,  with 
simple  inconspicuous  papillae  near  the  tip  ;  the 
labial  palpi  were  bushy  and  rather  long,  the 
apical  joint  smaller  than  the  others,  and  directed 
forward. 

The  front  wings  were  somewhat  triangular, 
twice  as  long  as  broad,  with  rather  a  pointed 
apex  ;  and  the  hind  wings  rounded  triangular,  of 
about  equal  length  and  breadth.  In  the  neura- 
tion  of  the  former  the  costal  and  subcostal  veins, 
with  the  upper  branches  of  the  latter,  were  closely 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLASSIFICA  TION.  241 

crowded  toward  the  front  edge,  at  the  middle  of 
which  the  costal  vein  terminated  ;  the  subcostal 
vein  ran  to  the  outer  border  just  below  the  apex  of 
the  wing  and  had  four  upper  branches  and  one 
lower  branch,  none  of  them  forked,  the  last  upper 
branch  striking  the  front  edge  just  before  the  tip 
of  the  wing  ;  the  median  had  four  equidistant 
branches,  the  last  branch  uniting  by  a  cross  vein 
a  little  beyond  the  middle  of  the  wing  with  the 
lowest  subcostal  branch  ;  the  submedian  ran  to 
the  inner  angle  and  the  internal  was  soon  lost  in 
the  membrane.  In  the  neuration  of  the  hind  wing 
the  subcostal  and  median  veins  with  their  branches 
occupied  the  middle  and  larger  part  of  the  wing  ; 
each  divided  into  three  branches,  all,  excepting 
perhaps  the  first  branch  of  the  subcostal  vein, 
originating  beyond  the  middle  of  the  open  cell ; 
the  costal  and  subcostal  veins  were  connate  at  the 
base,  suddenly  diverging  when  they  parted,  the 
former  just  reaching  the  costal  margin,  but  not 
extending  beyond  it ;  the  submedian  and  inter- 
nal were  simple  and  of  nearly  equal  length. 

In  coloring  and  pattern  they  might  have  been 
divided  into  three  general  types :  first,  those 
whose  wings  were  uniformly  dark  brown,  darker 
above  than  below  ;  second,  those  of  similar  ap- 
pearance, but  more  or  less  enlivened  in  the  middle 
with  tawny  above  and  yellow  below,  and  having, 
besides,  minute  spots  bare  of  scales  near  the 


242  A  NCESTR  Y  A  ND  CLA  SSI  PICA  TION. 

centre  of  the  wings,  especially  of  the  front  pair  ; 
third,  chequered  species,  black  and  white  above, 
but  below  pale  and  sometimes  washed  with  dashes 
of  brown  and  yellow.  In  addition,  the  front 
wings  of  the  male,  especially  in  the  first  two  types, 
often  bore  patches  of  peculiar,  probably  lustreless 
scales,  next  the  base  of  the  lower  median  inter- 
space. When  at  rest,  the  wings  were  fully  or 
almost  fully  expanded,  and  the  places  on  which 
they  chose  to  alight  were  the  upper  surface  of 
leaves  or  the  ground. 

All  the  legs  were  perfectly  developed,  the  tibiae 
and  tarsi  spined  above,  the  latter  also  furnished 
with  a  pair  of  longer  spines  at  the  tip  and  middle 
of  all  the  legs  ;  the  tarsi  were  longer  than  the  tibia, 
the  first  joint  as  long  as  all  the  others,  and  the  last 
supplied  at  tip  with  claws  and  pad  and  special 
hairs.  Finally,  the  primeval  butterfly  was  single- 
brooded  and  wintered  in  the  chrysalis  state. 

When  now  we  come  to  consider  what  modifica- 
tions of  this  primeval  type  exist  at  the  present 
day,  that  is,  how  butterflies  should  be  grouped 
into  their  various  tribes,  we  may  venture  at  the 
outset  to  remark  that  progress  in  the  classi- 
fication of  butterflies,  or  in  the  appreciation  of 
their  true  inter-relationships  has  been  grievously 
checked  by  the  very  charm  which  so  often  attracts 
men  to  their  study.  There  is  such  a  rage  for 
their  collection  by  amateurs,  enchanted  only  by 


A NCESTR  Y  A  ND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION.  243 

their  exquisite  beauty,  that  their  scientific  study 
has  been  largely  abandoned  by  those  who  are  best 
fitted  for  this  work  by  special  scientific  training. 
The  description  of  a  large  proportion  of  the 
known  species,  the  characterizing  of  very  many 
of  the  genera,  involving  in  either  case  the  desig- 
nation of  each  such  group  in  a  system,  has  been 
done  by  those  who  without  previous  training  in 
any  branch  of  natural  history  commenced  their 
career  by  the  formation  of  a  cabinet,  continued  it 
by  the  description  or  illustration  of  the  new 
species  they  were  able  to  acquire,  then  essayed 
the  foundation  of  new  genera,  and  all  without 
any  proper  knowledge  of  other  animals,  even  of 
those  most  nearly  allied  to  butterflies.  Of  course 
such  persons  are  quite  incompetent  to  judge  of 
the  relative  subordination  of  characters  in  the 
single  group  they  examine.  The  result  has  been 
exactly  what  might  have  been  predicted — a  con- 
fusion and  a  contradiction  in  current  classifica- 
tions that  is  at  war  with  the  harmony  of  nature. 
Much  is  due  no  doubt  to  our  comparative  igno- 
rance of  the  early  stages  of  butterflies.  Strange 
as  it  may  seem,  amateurs  seldom  collect,  still 
more  rarely  preserve  for  comparative  study,  eggs, 
caterpillars,  and  chrysalids. 

The  family  groups  into  which  butterflies  should 
be  divided  have  been  variously  given  all  the  way 
from  two  to  sixteen.  As  the  structure  of  the 


24  i  A  NCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSI  PICA  TIOJST. 

different  stages  becomes  better  known  there  is 
an  increasing  proof  of  the  intimate  connection  of 
many  of  the  groups  formerly  believed  very  dis- 
tinct ;  and  it  is  generally  conceded  by  the  better 
class  of  recent  writers  that  there  are  only  about 
half  a  dozen  principal  groups.  My  own  study  of 
their  structure  and  transformations  leads  me  to 
divide  them  primarily  into  four  families  :* 

The  Brush -footed  butterflies,  or  Nymphales. 

The  Gossamer- winged  butterflies,  or  Rurales. 

The  Typical  butterflies,  or  Papilionides. 

The  Skippers  or  Urbicolae. 

The  family  nature  of  the  last  group  has  never 
been  questioned  by  any  who  look  upon  the  but- 
terflies as  composed  of  more  than  one  family  ;  in- 
deed their  distinction  from  the  others  is  so  marked 
that  some  have  considered  the  remainder  of  the 
butterflies  their  equivalent  in  value  ;  that  is,  they 
divide  all  butterflies  into  only  two  families. 
Doubtless  these  skippers  first  separated  from  the 
common  stock,  and  never  developed  to  a  high 
degree,  since  they  still  remain  by  far  the  lowest 
of  the  group,  and  are  in  many  points  more  closely 
;allied  to  some  of  the  higher  moths  than  they  are 
to  any  other  butterflies.  They  are  peculiar  for 
their  robust  body,  broad  head,  such  as  we  have 
given  our  archaic  butterfly,  hooked  antennae, 

*  For  the  subdivisions  of  these  groups,  see  the  list  at  the  end 
of  this  book  (Appendix  II.). 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION.  245 

which  are  widely  separated  at  base,  great  length 
of  tongue,  and  the  presence  of  a  middle  pair  of 
spurs  on  the  front  and  usually  on  the  hind  legs, 
in  the  former  developed  as  a  curious  foliate  mem- 
brane ;  their  eggs  are  broadly  truncate  spheres, 
sometimes  ribbed  ;  their  caterpillars  have  a  large 
head  with  a  very  thick  skull  and  a  very  con- 
tracted neck,  formed  of  the  first  body  segment, 
and  bearing  a  corneous  shield  above  ;  their  chrys- 
alids  are  smooth  and  uniform,  like  the  pupae  of 
most  moths,  but  in  rare  instances  are  pointed  in 
front.  In  nearly  all  these  features  they  resemble 
the  picture  we  drew  of  the  primeval  type  ;  but 
in  the  hooked  antennae  and  foliate  appendage  of 
the  fore  tibiae  of  the  butterfly,  the  frequently 
ribbed  eggs,  the  constriction  of  the  neck  of  the 
caterpillar,  and  in  the  occasional  projection  of  the 
head  of  the  chrysalis,  they  have  departed  from 
that  type,  and  most  of  these  peculiarities  they 
share  with  no  other  butterflies.  The  other  fam- 
ilies appear  to  have  diverged  simultaneously  from 
each  other  shortly  after  their  common  separation 
from  the  skippers  ;  and  by  means  of  the  accom- 
panying rough  diagram  [Fig.  171],  which,  like 
most  attempts  at  genealogical  trees,  possesses 
anything  but  artistic  merit,  I  have  attempted  to 
exhibit  the  apparent  relation  of  the  different 
groups  to  each  other ;  the  position  of  the  main 
branches  and  their  divisions  is  supposed  to  indi- 


PIG.  171.— Diagram  to  illustrate  the 
affinities  of  the  different  groups  of 
butterflies.  A,  Nymphales,  Brueh- 
footed  butterflies  :  B,  Eurales,  Gossa- 
mer-winged butterflies  ;  C,  Papilioni- 


,  Typical  butterflies  ;  D.  Urbicolae, 
Skippers ;  1,  Praetores,  Satyrs ;  2, 
Festfai,  Danaids  ;  3,  Heliconii,  Heli- 
conians  ;  4,  Najades,  Nymphs  ;  5,  Hy- 
pati,  Snout  butterflies ;  6,  Vestales, 
Erycinids  ;  7,  Plebeii,  Lycaenids  ;  8, 
Danai,  Pierids  ;  9.  Equites,  Swallow- 
tails ;  20,  Parnaasii,  Parnassians  ;  11, 
Ilesptrides,  Larger  skippers ;  12,  AK- 
tyci,  Smaller  skippers ;  13,  Castnioi- 
des,  Castniarians. 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION.        .    247 

cate,  on  the  basis  of  existing  affinities,  the  rela- 
tive time  at  which  the  different  groups  diverged 
from  each  other  or  from  the  main  stem  ;  and  the 
height  which  each  branch  attains  the  relative 
perfection  of  the  highest  members  of  that  group. 
It  is  of  course  impossible  to  represent  this  with 
any  accuracy  on  a  flat  surface  ;  for  one  may  prop- 
erly conceive  of  a  group  only  as  a  mass,  with 
branches  springing  from  a  common  central  core. 
The  swallow-tails  and  lycaenids  are  thus  brought 
at  opposite  extremities  of  the  tree,  whereas 
they  are  closely  related  to  each  other,  and  dis- 
agree with  all  other  groups  in  the  relation  of  the 
head  of  the  caterpillar  to  the  segment  behind  it ; 
this  relationship,  however,  is  indicated  by  each 
occupying  the  lowest  twig  of  the  branch  on  which 
it  is  seated,  both  branches  being  closely  connected 
at  their  base.  The  striking  and  unique  peculiar- 
ities of  certain  groups  is  shown  by  their  extreme 
divergence  from  the  main  stem  ;  thus  the  swal- 
low-tails stand  apart  from  all  others  in  the  posses- 
sion of  dorsal  osmateria  in  the  caterpillar,  and  in 
certain  special  characters  of  the  butterfly,  shortly 
to  be  mentioned  ;  the  lycaenids  at  the  opposite 
extreme,  in  the  onisciform  nature  and  diminu- 
tive heads  of  their  caterpillars  ;  the  castnioides 
among  the  skippers  by  their  close  approach  to  the 
moths,  and  the  satyrs  or  meadow  browns  by  the 
forked  tail  of  their  caterpillars.  The  superficial 


248  A  NCE  STRY  A  ND  CLA  SSI  PICA  TION. 

affinity  of  this  last  group  to  the  skippers  is  also 
indicated  on  the  diagram  by  the  directness  of 
their  line  from  the  very  base  ;  it  is  one  of  the 
most  curious  features  in  the  structure  of  butter- 
flies that  its  highest  and  lowest  members  should 
resemble  each  other  in  so  many  minor  points. 
For  instance,  the  tone  of  coloring  and  pattern  of 
markings  on  the  wings  of  many  satyrs,  as  well 
as  the  position  and  general  nature  of  the  sexual 
marks  on  the  front  pair  of  some  males,  find  a 
close  counterpart  on  the  wings  of  some  skippers  ; 
so  also  the  chrysalids  of  satyrs  are  among  the 
simplest,  most  rounded,  and  compact  in  the  whole 
family,  approaching  in  this  respect  the  lowest 
butterflies.  Nevertheless,  in  all  the  prime  feat- 
ures of  their  organization,  the  satyrs  outrank  all 
others  or  divide  the  honors  with  another  small 
group. 

It  may  be  remarked  that,  with  slight  variations, 
this  distribution  of  the  groups  of  butterflies, 
founded  upon  the  relative  perfection  of  their 
organization,  is  generally  accepted  by  the  best  in- 
vestigators, and  is  based  upon  a  mass  of  minor 
features  which  cannot  be  recounted  here.  A 
single  exception  to  this  statement  should,  how- 
ever, be  made  in  regard  to  the  typical  butterflies, 
whose  position  is  the  point  of  greatest  dispute, 
many  continuing  to  place  them  highest  of  all  on 
account  of  the  beauty  and  special  perfection  of 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSI  PICA  TION.  249 

character  of  a  single  member  of  that  family,  the 
group  of  swallow-tails.  Nothing  can  exceed  the 
gorgeousness  of  the  huge  Ornithoptera  of  the 
East  Indies,  and  the  most  queenly  of  our  own 
New  England  forms  are  its  nearest  relatives. 
They  also  show  a  unique  development  in  the  di- 
minutive size  of  the  palpi  of  the  imago,  in  the  pos- 
session of  four  distinct  branches  to  the  median 
nervure  of  the  front  wing  [see  Fig.  75],  and  in  the 
dorsal  and  extreme  development  of  osmateria  in 
the  caterpillar  [see  Fig.  32],  to  which  we  have 
already  alluded.  But  there  is  no  reason  whatever 
for  considering  the  brevity  of  the  palpi  or  the 
extra  branch  of  the  median  nervure  marks  of  high 
organization,  the  one  arising  from  deficiency,  the 
other  from  excess  of  development.  On  the  con- 
trary, in  these  very  points  they  resemble  the 
skippers  more  closely  than  they  do  any  other 
butterflies,  and  these  features  are  therefore  traces 
of  their  low  organization.  The  possession  of  the 
peculiar  scent-organ,  however,  is  unquestionably 
a  mark  of  high  development.  Wallace  writes  : 
"  When  we  consider  this  singular  apparatus, 
which  in  some  species  is  nearly  half  an  inch  long, 
the  arrangement  of  muscles  for  its  protrusion  and 
retraction,  its  perfect  concealment  during  repose, 
its  blood-red  color,  and  the  suddenness  with 
which  it  can  be  thrown  out,  we  must,  I  think,  be 
led  to  the  conclusion  that  it  serves  as  a  protection 


250  ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION. 

to  the  larva,  by  startling  and  frightening  away 
some  enemy  when  about  to  seize  it,  and  is  thus 
one  of  the  causes  which  have  led  to  the  wide  ex- 
tension and  maintained  the  permanence  of  this 
now  dominant  group.  Those  who  believe  that 
such  peculiar  structures  can  only  have  arisen  by 
very  minute  successive  variations,  each  one  advan- 
tageous to  its  possessor,  must  see,  in  the  posses- 
sion of  such  an  organ  by  one  group  and  its  com- 
plete absence  in  every  other,  a  proof  of  a  very 
ancient  origin  and  of  very  long-continued  modifi- 
cation. And  such  a  positive  structural  addition 
to  the  organization  of  the  family,  subserving  an 
important  function,  seems  to  me  alone  sufficient 
to  warrant  us  in  considering  the  Papilionidae  as 
the  most  highly  developed  portion  of  the  whole 
order,  and  thus  in  retaining  it  in  the  position 
which  the  size,  strength,  beauty,  and  general 
structure  of  the  perfect  insects  have  been  gener- 
ally thought  to  deserve."  (Nat.  Select.,  p.  135.) 
It  is  unphilosophical,  however,  to  accord  high 
rank  to  any  group  for  a  single  characteristic,  and 
especially  when  in  nearly  all  its  other  important 
peculiarities  it  evinces  its  low  origin.  Moreover, 
extensile  fleshy  scent  organs  do  occur  in  other 
groups.  Guenee,  as  we  have  pointed  out,  discov- 
ered them  on  the  abdominal  segments  of  the  cater- 
pillars of  certain  blues  [see  Figs.  34,  35]  ;  and 
caruncles,  as  they  are  called,  entirely  similar  to 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION.  251 

osmateria  in  function,  general  structure,  and  de- 
gree of  development,  occur  in  single  genera  of 
beetles,  while  totally  absent  from  their  nearest 
allies  ;  yet  nobody  on  that  account  claims  for 
them  a  high  rank.  In  the  larvae  of  certain  moths, 
such  as  Cerura,  we  find  a  much  more  extraor- 
dinary special  development  than  the  caterpillars 
of  the  swallow-tails  can  boast ;  the  anal  prolegs 
become  long  cylindrical  tubes,  extending  back- 
ward and  upward,  from  out  of  which,  when  pro- 
voked, the  caterpillar  thrusts  a  highly  colored 
and  banded  fleshy  tentacle,  with  which  it  lashes 
its  body  to  frighten  away  intruders.  Yet  in 
other  points  of  its  structure  it  perfectly  agrees 
with  its  kindred.  Then  again,  if  we  examine  the 
lips  of  the  closed  osmateria  of  the  swallow-tails, 
we  shall  find  them  of  a  corneous  nature,  resem- 
bling no  other  feature  in  butterfly  larvae  than  the 
chitinous  dorsal  shield  on  the  first  segment  of  the 
caterpillars  of  skippers.  We  have  therefore  in 
the  very  osmateria  indications  of  a  low  origin,  a 
relationship  with  the  skippers,  which  most  other 
points  in  the  structure  of  the  swallow-tails  ex- 
hibit. The  recurved  club  of  the  antenna  recalls 
most  strikingly  the  structure  of  the  antennal  tip 
of  the  higher  skippers,  and  is  unlike  that  of  any 
other  group  of  butterflies.  The  inner  border  of 
the  hind  wing  also  is  folded,  just  as  it  always  is 
in  the  skippers  and  rarely  in  other  butterflies. 


252  ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 

But  perhaps  the  most  striking  point  of  affinity 
between  these  two  groups  lies  in  the  possession, 
on  the  front  tibiae,  of  the  same  characteristic  foli- 
ate appendage  [see  Fig.  173],  which  is  wanting  in 
all  other  butterflies  ;  this,  like  the  possession  in 
the  skippers  of  two  pair  of  spines  on  the  hind 
tibiae  is  certainly  a  mark  of  degradation,  by  which 
they  are  allied  to  the  lower  families  of  Lepidop- 
tera.  We  find  therefore  that  in  the  very  peculi- 
arities of  their  structure  wherein  they  depart  from 
the  higher  butterflies,  they  are  most  closely  re- 
lated to  the  skippers. 

But,  again,  the  swallow-tails  are  universally 
conceded  to  be  so  closely  allied  to  the  white  and 
yellow  butterflies  that  they  are  invariably  placed 
next  them.  Consequently,  if  the  swallow-tails 
are  placed  highest  in  the  scale,  the  yellows  must 
go  with  them  ;  nobody  questions  this  ;  yet  the 
yellows  possess  not  a  single  one  of  the  character- 
istics by  which  a  high  rank  is  claimed  for  the 
swallow-tails  ;  commentary  upon  this  is  needless. 

Having  thus  in  a  general  way  attempted  to  ex- 
hibit by  the  diagram  the  relationship  and  relative 
perfection  of  the  different  types,  reducing  them 
primarily  to  four  larger  groups,  we  may,  through 
several  features  in  their  structure  and  habits, 
prove  the  general  correctness  of  our  estimate,  by 
tracing  a  regular  progression  in  passing  from  the 
lower  to  the  higher  butterflies.  These  features 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 


253 


indicate  with  little  doubt  the  progress  of  events 
in  the  geologic  history  of  higher  lepidopterous 
life,  and  leave  a  record  of  advance 
which  is  completely  falsified  by 
removing  the  swallow-tails  to  the 
summit  of  the  order.  Attention  has 

recently    been 

drawn    to    one    of 

these   features  by 

Bates,  who   at  the 

view. 

same  time  has  pro- 
posed one  of  the  most  rational 
systems  yet  advanced  ;  it  has, 
however,  been  known  and  used 
in  dividing  butterflies  since  the 
time  of  Linne  and  Geoffroy.  I 
refer  to  the 
s  t  r  u  c  ture  of 
the  front  legs, 
where  funda- 
FIO.  i73.-side  view  of  mental  distinc- 

forc  legs  and  appendages 

of    Euphoeades   Troilus,    tlOUS         O  C  C  U  r 

X  5  ;  a,  tibia  and  tarsus  of 

SffinVtougSteMle.    flies  In      ^ 

lowest  family,  or  skippers  [Fig. 
172],   as  in  the  moths,  all  the 

legS    are    developed    tO    an    equal    further  enlarged  ;  c,  mid- 
dle leg  of  mate. 

extent ;  they  only  differ  in  pro- 
portional lenth  ;    in   the  swallow-tails  [Fig.  173] 


FIG.  174.— Side  view  of 
and    appendages    of 
~ioe,x5; 


254  A  NCESTR  Y  A  ND  CLA  SSI  PICA  TION. 

and  in   all  the   other  members   of   that  family 
this  also  is  true.    But  the  moment  we  leave  these 
two  lower  families  a  change  ap- 
pears in  the  front  legs  and  pro- 
gresses regularly ;  in  the  gossa- 
mer-winged butterflies    all    the 
legs  of  the  female  are  alike,  but 
c      the  front  legs  of  the  male  are 

FIG.  175.— Side  view  of 
l^gs  and  appendages  of 
Calephelis  borealis,  X  5 ; 
a,  tibia  and  tarsus  of  fore 
leg  of  male,  with  tarsus 
on  right  still  further  en- 
larged ,  b,  tibia  and  tarsus 
of  fore  leg  of  female, 
with  last  joint  of  tarsus  SeCtS 
on  right  still  further  en- 
larged;;c,  tibia  and  tarsus  an  autlgeny 
of  middle  leg  of  male. 

of  a  remark- 
able character.     In  the  lower 

cmh-faTYiilv    to  \vhir»Ti  nnr   Klnp<3       FIG.  176.— Side   view    of 

»  ictmiiy,  to  w  ii.  les  ]egg  and  appendage8  of  Eu_ 

anrl      prvrmprcs  Phydrvas  Phaeton,  x  5  ;  «, 

Coppers  tibia  and  tarsus  of  f9re  leg 

T     -,  r-rr  of  male,  with  last  joints  of 

belong     [I1  Ig.  tarsus  on  right  still  further 

.  enlarged  ;  6,  tibia  and  tar- 

174],  the  tarSl  BUS  of  fore  leg  of  female, 
with  last  joints  of  tarsus  on 

of  this  sex  gftfiatsrM 

b  w       ^        have  lost  the  dle  leg  of  male- 

c        terminal  claw,  and  are  densely 

FIG.  177.— Side   view  of 

spined  beneath ;  even  within 
this  sub-family  we  can  trace 
gradations,  the  claw  being  first 

of  female,  with  tarsus  on  -.  -,     ,  n 

right  stiii  further  eniarg-  replaced  by  a    single   curving 

eiT;  c,  tibia  and  tarsus  of 

middle  leg  of  male.  spine,  and  then  by  a  pair  of 
straight  spines  only  a  little  longer  than  the 
others  ;  in  the  higher  sub-family,  the  erycmids 


ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 


255 


FIG.  178.—  Spiral 


pa 


(Yestales)   [Fig.  175],  the  tarsi  are  spineless  and 

the  joints  reduced  from  five  to  one  or  two.     In 

the  highest  family,  the  brush-footed 

butterflies  [Fig.  176],  atrophy  of  the 

front  legs  has  reached  both  sexes, 

so  that  they  are  practically  useless, 

although  the  atrophy  is  much  more 

excessive  in  the  male  ;   the  legs  of 

the  female  are  greatly  reduced  in 

size,    and  lack   the  terminal   arma- 

ture  ;  while  in  the  male  of  the  very  *0n^e°8f 

highest  groups   [Fig.  177]  they  are 

exceedingly  diminutive,  and  the  tarsi 

are  reduced  to  a  single  minute*  joint.    Now  when 

we  remember  that  this  atrophy  affects  only  the 
legs  borne  by  the  first  segment  of  the 
thorax,  and  that  this  very  segment, 
and  this  only,  has  become  greatly 
reduced  in  size  in  passing  from  the 
low  larval  stage  to  the  perfect  form, 
we  must  accept  atrophy  of  these  legs 
as  a  conclusive  mark  of  high  organi- 
zation. 

If    again  we  examine   the    spiral 

FIG.  179.-Spiral  , 

tongue  of  Vanessa  tongue  W6  Sliall  find,  as  W6  paSS 
cardui,  with  pa- 

pillae, x  40.  upward,  a  regular  increase  of  com- 
plication in  the  structure  of  the  papillae,  or  organs 
of  taste.  In  the  swallow-tails,  as  in  the  skippers 
CFig.  178),  these  papillae  are  merely  minute  dis- 


256  A  NCES  TRY  AND  CLA  SSI  PICA  TION. 

tant  tubercles,  situated  near  the  tip,  half  a  dozen 
or  less  on  either  side,  seldom  rising  much  above 
the  surface.  In  the  gossamer-winged  butterflies 
they  are  longer  and  more  frequent ;  while  in  the 
brush-footed  butterflies  [Fig.  179]  the  papillae 
are  often  half  the  breadth  of  the  tongue  in  length, 
crowded  closely  together  and  often  trifid  at  their 
tip. 

Finally,  how  do  the  modes  of  transformation 
affect  the  question  ?  The  moths,  as  a  general 
rule,  pass  their  chrysalis  stage  in  a  cocoon  of  silk 

or  earth,  in  which 
they  lie  loosely  in  a 
horizontal  position. 
The  skippers  also  al- 
ways undergo  their 
transformations  in  a 

FIG.  180. — Cocoon  of  Epargyreus  Tityrns,  -,.    -,       £         ., 

nat.  size,  the  front  removed  to  show  the  two  COCOOU,  a  Him  I,  iraglle 
Y-shaped  shrouds  by  which  it  is  suspended.  .  .  . 

affair,  it  is  true,  but 

still  unquestionably  a  cocoon ;  one  or  two  other 
butterflies  also  make  a  slight  cocoon  w^herein  to 
change  to  chrysalis,  and  these  few  instances,  such 
as  Parnassius  and  Zegris,  belong  exclusively  to 
the  same  family  as  the  swallow-tails,  though  not 
to  the  same  exact  division.  The  skippers,  how- 
ever [Fig.  180],  do  not  lie  loosely  in  their  cocoons 
as  do  the  pupae  of  moths,  but  spin  at  either  end  a 
Y-shaped  thread,  into  the  centre  of  one  of  which 
they  plunge  their  hooked  tail,  while  in  the  upper 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLA  SSIFICA  TION.  257 

loop  of  the  other  they  rest  their  body,  changing 
the  form  of  the  upper  arms  of  the  Y  from  a  V  to 
a  U.  Now  when  we  reach  the  next  family,  the 
typical  butterflies,  the  cocoon,  save  in  the  excep- 
tional instances  mentioned,  is  lost ;  while  the 
silken  attachments  of  the  chrysalis  still  remain, 
modified  to  suit  the  circumstances.  Instead  of 
the  Y-shaped  band,  wherein  to  plunge  the  tail,  a 
carpet  of  silk  is  woven  upon  some  branch  into  the 
midst  of  which  the  hooks  are  thrust,  while  the 
omission  of  the  stem  of  the  other  Y  leaves  a 
U-shaped  loop  or  girt  about  the  middle.  To  ac- 
commodate the  chrysalis  thus  hung  next  a  solid 
substance,  instead  of  in  the  middle  of  an  oval 
cell,  the  segments  of  the  abdomen  must  curve  up- 
ward toward  the  ventral  line  (for  the  chrysalis 
lies  back  downward),  and  thus  the  ventral  line 
becomes  straight,  while  the  dorsal  is  strongly 
arched  [see  Fig.  139].  This  condition  of  things  is 
perpetuated  and  often  intensified  in  the  next 
higher  family,  the  gossamer- winged  butterflies, 
which  differ  in  this  respect  from  the  typical  but- 
terflies only  in  the  closer  binding  of  the  girt 
around  the  middle  [see  Fig.  58].  In  the  high- 
est family,  the  brush-footed  butterflies,  the  girt 
around  the  middle  is  lost  and  the  chrysalis  hangs 
suspended  by  the  tail  alone.  We  see,  therefore, 
a  regular  progression  from  the  lower  to  the  higher 
butterflies,  in  the  loss,  first,  of  the  cocoon,  next, 


258  ANCESTRY  AND  CLASSIFICATION. 

of  the  girt  ;  and,  as  if  this  were  not  enough,  some 
of  the  highest  butterflies  (among  the  satyrs)  have 
even  lost  the  last  remnant  of  silk  and  fallen  to  the 
ground,  where,  amid  stubble  or  in  crevices  in  the 
ground,  they  undergo  their  transformations  with- 
out more  ado.  As  if,  moreover,  to  show  that  this 
suspension  of  the  chrysalis  by  the  tail  alone  is  a 
stage  beyond  that  of  hanging  by  tail  and  girth, 
we  have  a  clear  proof  that  all  the  Suspensi,  as 
Boisduval  happily  calls  them,  have 
passed  through  the  stage  of  the  Suc- 
cincti, since  the  straight  ventral  sur- 
face of  the  abdomen  [Fig.  181  ;  see 
also  Figs.  54,  57],  assumed  perforce 
by  the  Succincti,  when  they  left  the 
cocoon  stage  and  became  attached  to 
PIG.  isi.-chrys-  hard  surfaces,  still  remains  in  the 
chrysalis  of  the  brush-footed  butter- 


nat.  size. 

flies,  where  it  no  longer  serves  any 
purpose  ;  as  clear  and  striking  an  indication  that 
the  Suspensi  outrank  the  Succincti,  as  that  the 
pupa  is  higher  than  the  larva. 

What  sort  of  arguments  were  formerly  used  by 
a  certain  class  of  speculative  philosophers  may  be 
judged  from  the  following  passage  published 
forty  -five  years  ago  :  "  The  chrysalis  of  the  [true] 
butterfly,  the  pre-eminent  type  of  annulose  ani- 
mals, is  fixed  with  its  head  upward,  as  if  it 
looked  to  the  pure  regions  of  heaven  for  the  en- 


ANCESTR  Y  AND  CLASSIFICA  TION.  259 

joyment  it  is  to  receive  in  its  last  and  final  state 
of  perfection  ;  but  the  chrysalis  of  the  brush- 
footed  butterflies,  whose  caterpillars  are  stinging, 
is  suspended  with  the  head  downward  to  the 
earth,  thus  pointing  to  the  world,  as  the  only 
habitation  where  its  innumerable  types  of  evil  are 
permitted  to  reside  ;  or  to  that  dark  and  bottom- 
less region,  where  punishment  awaits  the  wicked 
at  their  last  great  change."* 

*  Swainson,  Geogr.  and  Class.  Auim.,  p.  248.    London,  1835. 


CHAPTEE  XIII. 

GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION.      THE  COLONIZATION  OP  NEW 
ENGLAND. 

THE  four  great  families  of  butterflies  are  found 
in  every  quarter  of  the  globe.  All  are  represented 
even  on  the  inhospitable  shores  of  Labrador  and 
in  the  accidental  fauna  of  the  South  Sea  Islands. 
They  are,  however,  very  unequally  represented  in 
every  distinct  zoological  province,  and  some  of 
the  minor  groups  are  peculiar  to  one  or  more  of 
such  regions.  The  most  striking  general  feature 
in  the  distribution  of  the  larger  groups  is  the  al- 
most exclusive  restriction  of  the  sub -family  of 
Erycinids  to  tropical  America,  quite  as  promi- 
nent a  fact  as  the  similar  limitation  of  humming- 
birds to  the  same  region.  The  species  of  hum- 
ming-birds are  the  smallest  of  their  class  and 
number  nearly  four  hundred,  or  about  four  per 
cent  of  the  known  birds  ;  they  are  exclusively 
American,  and  more  than  ninety  per  cent  of  them 
are  confined  to  the  tropics.  The  Erycinids  are 
among  the  smallest  of  butterflies  and  number 
nearly  eight  hundred  species,  or  about  ten  per 
cent  of  the  known  butterflies  ;  of  these  only 


GEOGRAPHICAL   DISTRIBUTION.  261 

thirty  species,  or  less  than  four  tenths  of  one  per 
cent  of  the  family,  are  found  in  the  Old  World, 
and  of  the  American  species  ninety-seven  per 
cent  are  confined  to  the  tropics.  Only  six  hum- 
ming-birds, and  similarly  but  seven  Erycinids,  are 
known  within  the  limits  of  the  United  States. 

All  the  families  of  butterflies  are  infinitely  rich- 
er in  specific  forms  within  the  tropics  than  in  the 
temperate  zones,  and  the  Gossamer- winged  butter- 
flies and  the  Skippers  much  more  richly  in  the 
New  than  in  the  Old  World.  The  highest  fam- 
ily, or  Brush-footed  butterflies,  is  perhaps  more 
numerous  than  any  of  the  others,  and  though,  like 
them,  it  reaches  its  maximum  of  development 
within  the  tropics,  its  numerical  superiority  is 
most  evident  in  temperate  zones,  and  especially  in 
the  north  temperate  region  of  the  Old  World, 
where  its  numbers  equal  those  of  all  the  other 
families  combined. 

In  this  respect  we  shall  find  a  great  difference 
between  the  European  and  the  eastern  North 
American  butterflies.  Writers,  in  comparing  the 
insects  of  these  two  regions,  have  usually  called 
attention  to  their  similarity  ;  and  since  these 
regions  are  embraced  between  the  same  isothermal 
lines  and  nourish  the  same  cereals,  we  should 
naturally  look  for  a  great  resemblance.  But  if 
we  omit  from  each  the  extreme  southern  species 
we  shall  find,  first,  that  eastern  America  is  poorer 


262  GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION. 

than  Europe,  having  about  one  fifth  less  butter- 
flies ;  again,  while  half  of  the  European  butter- 


FIG.  182.— Chlorippe  Herse  ;  a,  eggs  ;  b,  caterpillar  ;  c,  chrysalis ;  rf,  upper 
surface  of  male  butterfly  ;  the  dotted  line  at  left  indicates  the  contour  of  the 
wings  of  the  female  ;  nat.  size  (Riley). 

flies  are  Brush-footed  butterflies  [Figs.  182-185], 
less  than  one  third  of  the  American*  butterflies 


FIG.  183.— Chlorippe  Her=e;  g,  half  grown  caterpillar  ;  A,  under  surface  male 
butterfly  ;  i-m,  the  heads  of  caterpillars  from  first  to  fifth  stage  enlarged  (the 
lines  at  the  side  indicating  their  real  length)  ;  n,  o.  top  and  side  view  of  one 
segment  of  caterpillar  ;  p.  egg,  x  20.  the  natural  size  at  right ;  g,  caterpillars 
of  the  size  at  which  they  hibernate  (Riley;. 

*  By  American,  in  this  and  the  folio  wing  places,  1  mean  North 
America  east  of  the  Great  Plains. 


GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION. 


263 


belong  to  this  family.  The  Gossamer-winged 
butterflies  [Figs.  186,  187]  are  also  proportion- 
ally a  little  less  abundant  in  America  than  in 


PIG.  184.—  Chlorippe  Lycaon;  a,  eggs  on  under  side  of  leaf  :  b,  caterpillar ; 
',  d,  chrysalis  ;  e,  upper  surface  of  male  butterfly  ;  the  dotted  line  at  left  mdi- 
ates  the  contour  of  the  wing  of  the  female ;  nat.  size  (Kiley). 


c, 
cates 


Europe,  while  the  Typical  butterflies  are  slightly 
more  abundant.     The  balance  on  the  American 


FIG.  185.— Chlorippe  Lycaon ;  /,  egg,  nat.  size  and  X  18 ;  </,  caterpillar  ;  A, 
under  surface  of  male  butterfly ;  i-m,  the  heads  of  caterpillars  from  first  to  fifth 
stages,  nat.  size  and  magnified  ;  n,  o,  top  and  side  view  of  one  segment  of 
caterpillar,  enlarged  (Riley). 

side,  however,  is  made  up  in  the  lowest  family, 
since  nearly  one  third  of  the  American  fauna  is 
composed  of  Skippers  [Fig.  188],  while  scarcely 


264  GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION. 

more  than  one  tenth  of  the  European  fauna  is 
composed  of  this  family.  As  contrasted  with 
each  other,  then,  Europe  is 
peculiar  for  its  wealth  in 
Brush  -  footed  butterflies, 
America  in  Skippers. 

The  disparity  of  represen- 


FIG.  186.—  incisaiia  Niphon,  tation  is  rendered  more  strik- 

nat.   size  ;    under  surface  on 

right  (Harris).  jng  wnen  we   compare    the 


minor  groups.     We  will  not  here  enter  into  many 

details,  but  only  point  out  the 

following  facts  :  first,  that  the 

great  disparity  of  numbers  in 

the   Brush-footed    butterflies 

on  the  two  continents  is  almost 

~**&!$85&'  V:  ' 

wholly  due  to  the  vast  number 

J  Fi«.  187.—  Catephehs    bo- 

of  Satyrs  or  Meadow-browns   ™&  ^f^6  ;  under  sur' 


in    Europe  —  it    has    seventy- 

seven  species  while  we  have  but  nineteen  ;  second, 

that  the  preponderance 
of  Skippers  in  this 
country  is  due  to  the 
great  proportion  of  the 
Astyci  or  smaller  Skip- 
pers [Fig.  189],  which 

FIG.  188.—  ThorybesP.vlade8.nat.  size;     number          forty  -  four 
under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

with  us,  against  nine  in 

Europe  ;  third,  that  while  the  Hair-streaks  are 
twice  as  numerous  in  America  as  in  Europe,  the 


GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION.  265 

balance  in  the  sub-family  is  more  than  restored 
by  the  superior  number  of  Blues  in  Europe, 
where  there  are  thirty-eight  species  to  our  thir- 
teen ;  fourth,  that  while  the  numbers  of  the  Typ- 
ical butterflies  on  the  two  continents  are  almost 
equal,  there  is  no  similarity  of  representation  in 
the  groups  composing  the  family,  excepting  in  the 
Whites  ;  for  the  Orange-tips  (Frugalia)  number 
seven  in  Europe  and  two  in  America,  the  Yel- 
lows ten  in  Europe  and  twenty  in  America,  the 
Swallow-tails  [Fig.  190] 
three  in  Europe  and  nine  in 
America,  and  the  Parnas- 
sians (Parnassii)  six  in  Eu- 
rope and  none  in  America. 
Notwithstanding  such 

,-!   .  ,,  FIG.  189  —  Euphyes  Metacomet, 

Striking       Contrasts,       there    nat.  size  ;  the  left  side  represents 

the  upper  surface  of  the  male ;  the 

are  many  apparent  resem-  right  the  upper  surface  of  the 

female,  attached  to  the  body. 

blances  ;  but  upon  analysis 

nearly  all  of  these  disappear.  Take,  for  example, 
the  two  most  striking  cases,  the  Angle- wings 
and  the  larger  Skippers  [Fig.  191],  in  both  of 
which  the  numbers  are  the  same  in  the  two  coun- 
tries ;  in  the  latter  only  two  of  the  eight  Amer- 
ican and  four  European  genera  are  common  to 
both  countries,  and  in  these  two  the  representa- 
tion is  very  unequal,  one  genus  having  six  spe- 
cies in  America  against  two  in  Europe,  and  the 
other  fourteen  in  Europe  and  two  in  America. 


li 


II 


GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION.  267 

In  the  Angle- wings  there  are  eight  genera,  of 
which  four  are  represented  on  each  continent,  the 
others  being  equally  divided  between  the  two 
countries.  We  have  in  this  instance  a  closer  re- 
semblance than  in  any  other  group  of  butterflies, 
because  its  genera  are  mainly  genera  of  the  north 
temperate  zone  ;  and  a  careful  study  of  all  other 
points  of  resemblance  between  the  two  countries 


FIG.  191.— Epargyrens  Tityrns,  nat.  size  ;  under  surface  on  left. 

will  show  that  they  are  almost  all  confined  to 
groups  which  are  boreal  in  their  aspect ;  while, 
if  we  had  excluded  from  the  comparisons  the 
species  inhabiting  in  either  country  the  high 
north,  and  had  included  those  of  the  extreme 
south,  not  only  would  the  number  of  species  in 
either  country  have  been  considerably  augmented, 
but  the  resemblances  would  have  been  greatly 


268     THE  COLONIZA  TION  OF  NE  W  ENGLAND. 

diminished,  and  the  differences  more  than  pro- 
portionally increased. 

It  will  be  evident  from  what  has  been  stated 
that  a  considerable  portion  of  the  present  butter- 
fly fauna  of  the  eastern  United  States  has  been 
derived  from  the  north,  and  a  still  greater  portion 
from  the  south.  If  we  are  to  judge  of  the  deriva- 
tion of  the  present  fauna  by  the  geographical  dis- 
tribution of  its  nearest  allies,  we  shall  come  to  no 
uncertain  conclusions.  Omitting  from  consider- 
ation such  species  as  belong  properly  to  the  ex- 
treme north  or  south,  and  the  few  species  believed 
to  have  been  introduced,  there  will  be  left  about 
one  hundred  and  forty,  which  may  be  considered 
the  foundation  of  the  fauna,  including  nearly 
twenty  genera  peculiar  to  it.  A  careful  study  of 
the  affinities  of  these  one  hundred  and  forty 
species  shows  that  more  than  three-fourths  of 
both  genera  and  species  have  their  nearest  allies 
in  the  south,  mostly  in  Mexico  and  Central 
America.  Nearly  all  of  the  remainder  belong  to 
genera  represented  around  the  entire  temperate 
zone  of  the  northern  hemisphere.  Excepting 
those  which  are  closely  connected  either  with 
European  or  with  Western  American  species,  I 
do  not  recall  a  single  genus  peculiar  to  the  region, 
unless  it  be  Feniseca,  one  of  the  Coppers,  which 
is  unique.  We  may  therefore  conclude  that  our 
fauna  is  in  no  respect  endemic,  and  that  by  far 


THE  COLONIZATION  OF  NEW  ENGLAND.     269 

the  greater  part    of  it  was    derived    from   the 
south. 

We  are  thus  led  from  a  consideration  of  the 
structure  and  relationship  of  the  present  butterfly 
inhabitants  of  New  England  and  the  neighboring 
region  to  the  same  conclusion  to  which  the  recent 
geological  history  of  the  country  would  force  us. 
The  great  glacial  sheet  which  covered  the  land 
was  no  fit  residence  for  butterflies  ;  but  many 
sorts,  companions  of  the  cold,  which  it  had  driven 
southward  in  its  advance  from  the  pole,  hugged 
its  southern  boundaries  in  the  Middle  States,  and 
when  this  huge  continental  glacier  commenced 
slowly  to  retreat,  they  too  were  driven  back  to 
their  ancient  sporting  grounds,  by  the  too  fierce 
heat  of  the  summer's  sun  and  the  parching  of 
their  food,  the  plants  which  love  the  snow. 
Others  followed  at  a  more  cautious  distance,  and 
of  these  insects  perhaps  a  fourth  of  our  fauna  is 
composed.  That  this  is  a  true  history  appears 
from  many  facts,  but  from  none  more  curiously 
than  the  presence,  on  the  summit  of  Mount  Wash- 
ington, of  a  fragile  butterfly  [Fig.  192],  whose 
home  is  there  limited  to  a  few  acres  of  ground, 
but  which  occurs  again  two  thousand  miles  away, 
on  the  alpine  summits  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
and  is  represented  at  half  that  distance,  in  the 
north,  by  another  butterfly,  doubtless  descended 
from  the  same  ancestor  at  no  very  remote  epoch. 


270     THE  COLONIZATION  OF   NEW  ENGLAND. 

A  recent  writer  in  the  American  Naturalist,  Mr. 
Grote,  has  drawn  a  picture  of  the  way  in  which, 
like  many  plants  peculiar  to  the  same  alpine 
heights,  it  was  left  behind  on  the  retreat  of  the 
glacial  covering  of  the  continent.  "  Year  after 
year,"  he  says,  "  the  great  glacier  retreated 
farther  and  farther  north,  followed  by  the  main 
body  of  its  train,  plants,  butterflies  and  animals, 
the  while  some  of  these  foolish  butterflies  were 
beguiled  by  the  shallow  ice-rivers,  which  then 


FIG.  19?.— Oeneis  semidea,  nat.  size ;  the  under  surface  on  right  (Harris). 

filled  the  ravines  of  Mount  Washington.  Return 
became  at  length  impossible.  They  advanced 
behind  the  descending  local  glaciers,  step  by  step 
up  the  mountain-side,  pushed  up  from  below  by 
the  warm  climate,  which  to  them  was  uncon- 
genial, until  they  reached  the  mountain-peak, 
now  bare  of  snow  in  the  short  summer.  Here, 
blown  side  wise  by  the  wind,  they  patiently 
cling  to  the  rocks.  Or,  in  clear  weather,  on  weak 
and  careful  wing,  they  fly  from  flower  of  stemless 
mountain  pink  to  blueberry,  swaying  from  their 


THE  COLONIZA  TION  OF  NE  W  ENGLAND.     271 

narrow  tenure  of  the  land.  Drawn  into  the  cur- 
rents of  air  that  sweep  the  mountain's  side  they 
are  forced  downward,  to  be  parched  in  the  valleys 
below.  Yet  they  maintain  themselves.  They  are 
fighting  it  out  on  that  line." 

That  the  great  bulk  of  our  fauna,  however,  is 
composed  of  southern  types  is  evident,  and  may 
be  explained  by  the  direction  of  the  mountain 
chains,  which  form  no  barrier  to  the  northward 
march  of  animals  ;  while  our  poverty,  as  com- 
pared with  Europe,  may  be  due  to  the  form  of  the 
continents  themselves,  the  tropical  lands  of 
America  being  scattered  about  among  islands,  or 
connected  with  the  northern  temperate  zone  by 
a  very  narrow  isthmus ;  while  Europe,  on  the 
other  hand,  has  easy  connection  with  all  parts  of 
the  Old  World. 


APPENDIX     I . 

INSTRUCTIONS    FOR    COLLECTING,     REARING,    PRESERVING,     AND 
STUDYING. 

HAPPILY  the  time  is  past  when  butterfly-collectors 
devote  their  entire  attention  to  the  perfect  insect. 
They  at  least  rear  them  from  the  caterpillar  or  chrysalis 
to  obtain  fresher  and  more  beautiful  specimens  for 
their  cabinets  ;  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  any  young 
enthusiasts  who  may  read  this  book  will  be  quite  as 
ready  to  collect,  preserve,  and  study  their  earlier  stages 
as  the  full  grown  insect.  It  therefore  needs  no  apology 
from  me  in  giving  here  more  space  to  instructions  con- 
cerning the  pursuit  of  the  immature  than  of  the  mature 
form. 

The  best  method  of  raising  butterflies  is  to  obtain 
eggs  from  the  parent  and  rear  them  to  maturity.  This 
is  by  no  means  difficult  and  is  full  of  interest  ;  it  is 
only  necessary  to  know  the  food  plant  of  the  cater- 
pillar— and  that  of  nearly  all  our  northern  species 
is  ascertained  ;*  or  if  it  is  not  known,  it  may  often 
be  inferred  from  that  of  neighboring  species,  or  dis- 
covered by  patiently  following  the  female  as  she  flits 
from  leaf  to  leaf,  and  noticing  the  plants  she  chooses 
whereon  to  lay  her  eggs.  The  butterfly  generally 
selects  the  middle  of  the  day  for  this  duty,  but  the 
eager  youth  must  not  expect  at  once  to  obtain  her 
secret,  for  he  will  find  himself  only  too  often  foiled. 
Once  known,  the  way  is  comparatively  easy  ;  catch  a 
female,  selecting  for  the  purpose  one  which  has  evi- 
dently been  flying  for  at  least  a  few  days,  and  which  is 

*  A  list  of  the  foot  plants  of  such  species  as  are  mentioned  in 
this  book  is  given  in  Appendix  II. 


274  APPENDIX  /. 

gravid  with  eggs,  and  inclose  her  beneath  a  gauze  cov- 
ering upon  the  growing  plant.  If  it  be  a  tree  or  bush, 
tie  a  muslin  bag  over  a  bough,  taking  care  that  there 
are  some  tender  leaves  upon  it  (and  no  ants),  and  so 
arrange  the  bag  that  the  butterfly  may  rest  naturally 
upon  them  ;  inclose  the  butterfly  and  she  will  pretty 
certainly  deposit  eggs  in  the  course  of  a  day  or  two.  Or, 
if  the  plant  be  one  of  small  size,  use  a  headless  keg, 
covered  at  one  end  with  gauze ;  even  a  discarded  vege- 
table can  will  servo  the  purpose. 

After  a  day's  or  two  days'  confinement,  the  prisoner 
should  be  set  free.  If  she  has  not  then  laid  eggs,  she 
probably  cannot,  and  she  should  be  released.  If  she 
has  yielded  the  desired  harvest,  she  should  be  rewarded 
with  liberty.  When  obtained,  the  leaves  or  twigs  upon 
which  the  eggs  are  found  may  either  be  left  where  they 
are  or  carried  home  to  more  convenient  quarters. 

It  is  not  easy  to  preserve  eggs  entire.  If  they  do  not 
hatch  they  are  apt  to  shrivel,  excepting  such  as  have  a 
dense  pellicle,  like  the  hemispherical  eggs  of  the  smaller 
skippers  or  the  echinoid  eggs  of  the  blues  and  cop- 
pers ;  it  is  nearly  impossible,  too,  to  prick  the  egg  and 
save  its  form.  The  best  way  is  to  watch  for  the  egress 
of  the  caterpillar  and  the  moment  it  is  free  separate  it 
from  the  shell,  which  it  will  otherwise  devour  ;  in  that 
way  I  have  obtained  a  considerable  collection  of  these 
little  gems.  Or  they  may  be  obtained  from  the  plants 
on  which  they  have  been  laid  naturally,  by  searching  the 
food  plants  carefully  ;  they  are  not  so  difficult  to  detect 
as  might  be  supposed  ;  many  of  these  will  be  found  at- 
tacked by  minute  parasites,  which  generally  make  their 
exit  through  a  single  minute  hole,  leaving  the  egg  in 
an  admirable  condition  for  the  cabinet.  The  eggs  can 
then  be  gummed,  with  or  without  the  leaf  on  which 
they  are  laid,  upon  triangular  bits  of  card-board, 
pinned  and  transferred  to  the  cabinet.  Inspissated 
ox-gall,  diluted  with  an  equal  quantity  of  thick  gum 
arabic,  makes  the  best  material  for  attachment  to  the 
card. 


APPENDIX  7.  275 

In  rearing  from  the  egg  the  greatest  difficulty  is 
during  early  life  ;  young  caterpillars  must  have  the 
freshest  and  tenderest  food  and  not  too  much  confine- 
ment. With  all  precautions  many  will  be  lost,  for 
they  are  so  small  that  it  is  difficult  to  keep  track  of 
them,  and  some  are  very  prone  to  wander  when  their  food 
does  not  suit  them.  Some  open  vessel  with  the  grow- 
ing plant  is  the  best  receptacle  ;  in  place  of  this  a 
similar  vessel  (the  larger  the  better)  holding  moist  sand 
in  which  a  sprig  of  the  food  plant  is  plunged  may  be 
used — covered  if  convenient  with  gauze  to  prevent  the 
escape  of  the  caterpillar.  The  vessel  should  be  placed 
in  the  light,  but  not  in  the  sun,  and  for  many  kinds  it 
is  well  to  lay  chips  or  bits  of  bark  upon  the  ground,  be- 
neath which  the  caterpillars  may  hide.  At  each  moult 
the  caterpillar  remains  motionless,  refusing  to  feed  for 
twenty-four  hours  or  more,  and  at  such  times  it  should 
not  be  disturbed.  It  is  best  never  to  touch  them,  and 
when  necessary  to  change  the  food,  the  old  leaf  with 
the  caterpillar  upon  it  should  be  put  beside  or  upon  the 
fresh  food,  and  only  removed  when  deserted  by  the 
caterpillar.  When  older  the  creature  will  bear  rougher 
treatment  and  may  often  be  confined  in  a  nearly  tight 
tin  or  earthen  vessel  with  freshly  plucked  leaves  ;  but 
all  caterpillars  will  not  bear  this  treatment,  and  care 
should  always  be  taken  that  their  quarters  do  not  be- 
come foul. 

A  very  convenient  form  of  breeding  cage  or  vivarium 
is  shown  in  Fig.  193,  and  is  thus  described  by  Mr. 
Riley  :  "  It  comprises  three  distinct  parts  :  first,  the 
bottom  board  (a),  consisting  of  a  square  piece  of  inch- 
thick  walnut  with  a  rectangular  zinc  pan  (ff)  four 
inches  deep  fastened  to  it  above,  to  prevent  cracking  or 
warping,  facilitate  lifting,  and  allow  the  air  to  pass 
underneath  the  cage.  Second,  a  box  (b),  with  three 
glass  sides  and  a  glass  door  in  front,  to  fit  over  the 
zinc  pan.  Third,  a  cap  (c)  which  fits  closely  to  the 
box,  and  has  a  top  of  fine  wire  gauze.  To  the  centre 
of  the  zinc  pan  is  soldered  a  zinc  tube  (d)  just  large 


276 


APPENDIX  I. 


enough  to  contain  an  ordinary  quinine  bottle.  The 
zinc  pan  is  filled  with  clean  sifted  earth  or  sand  (e), 
and  the  quinine  bottle  is  for  the  reception  of  the  food 
plant.  The  cage  admits  of  abundant  light  and  air, 
and  also  of  the  easy  removal  of  excrement  and  frass 


FIG.  193. — Breeding  cage,  described  in  the  text. 

which  falls  to  the  ground  ;  while  the  insects  in  trans- 
forming attach  themselves  to  the  sides  or  the  cap  ac- 
cording to  their  habits.  The  most  convenient  dimen- 
sions I  find  to  be  twelve  inches  square  and  eighteen 
inches  high  ;  the  cap  and  the  door  fit  closely  by  means 
of  rabbets,  and  the  former  has  a  depth  of  about  four 


APPENDIX  I.  277 

inches  to  admit  of  the  largest  cocoon  being  spun  in  it 
without  touching  the  box  on  which  it  rests.  The  zinc 
pan  might  be  made  six  or  eight  inches  deep,  and  the 
lower  half  filled  with  sand,  so  as  to  keep  the  whole 
moist  for  a  greater  length  of  time.  A  dozen  such 
cages  will  furnish  room  for  the  annual  breeding  of  a 
great  number  of  species,  as  several  having  different 
habits  and  appearance,  and  which  there  is  no  danger 
of  confounding,  may  be  simultaneously  fed  in  the  same 
cage." 

The  best  success  will  always  attend  efforts  to  place 
the  prisoner  in  conditions  as  nearly  natural  as  possible  ; 
but  in  rearing  out  of  doors  it  is  more  difficult  to  keep 
track  of  your  charge,  and  they  are  of  course  more 
subject  to  their  natural  enemies,  which  are  numerous 
and  vigilant.  Moreover  it  is  then  impossible,  or  nearly 
so,  to  obtain  the  cast-off  heads  of  each  moult,  which 
are  well  to  preserve  for  comparative  study  at  leisure,  or 
to  complete  the  tangible  marks  of  the  life  history  of 
the  insect. 

Such  caterpillars  as  construct  nests  in  which  to  live 
when  not  feeding,  and  especially  such  as  then  live  a 
great  while  in  the  caterpillar  state,  as  for  instance 
nearly  all  the  skippers,  are  the  hardest  to  rear  satisfac- 
torily apart  from  their  natural  homes  ;  they  do  not 
like  to  live  in  a  dried-up  house,  nor  to  be  continually 
wasting  their  energies  in  the  construction  of  new  ones, 
so  that  one's  ingenuity  is  often  taxed  to  keep  them 
happy  ;  but  patience  and  careful  attention  to  their 
natural  conditions  will  reap  their  reward,  and  I  believe 
it  is  possible  with  care  to  breed  any  of  our  species  in 
confinement.  Caterpillars  found  partly  grown  in  a 
state  of  nature  maybe  reared  in  confinement  for  the 
rest  of  their  lives  with  equal  ease  ;  only  one  labors  then 
under  the  disadvantage,  if  he  cares  pnTy  for  the  butter- 
fly, of  being  rewarded  for  his  pains  only  by  a  fine 
batch  of  minute  hymenopterous  parasites  or  a  bristling 
fly  or  two.  To  one,  however,  who  is  interested  in  the 
entire  history  of  these  creatures,  this  is  not  altogether 


278  APPENDIX  /. 

a  loss,  for  he  will  add  perchance  to  his  stock  of  butter- 
fly parasites,  of  which  for  some  species  many  different 
kinds  are  already  known. 

The  search  for  caterpillars  in  their  haunts  is  often 
very  easy,  especially  if  their  food  plant,  habits,  and 
seasons  are  known  ;  to  search  for  a  caterpillar  out  of 
season  is  an  anachronism  one  will  not  enjoy.  Partly 
eaten  leaves  are  one  of  the  best  guides  to  the  discovery 
of  caterpillars  ;  while  such  as  construct  nests  of  any 
sort  are  very  readily  detected,  especially  when  the  nests 
are  so  built  as  to  expose  the  under  surfaces  of  leaves, 
where  their  upper  surfaces  would  be  expected,  as  in 
the  case  of  many  of  the  higher  skippers  [see  Fig.  94]. 
The  caterpillars  of  the  blues,  coppers,  etc.,  are  perhaps 
the  most  difficult  to  find,  because  they  so  nearly  resem- 
ble in  color  the  surfaces  on  which  they  rest ;  the  same 
is  true  of  the  caterpillar  of  our  common  yellow  butter- 
fly ;  but  when  one  has  once  discovered  them,  and 
knows  how  they  look  in  their  natural  situations,  the 
search  becomes  much  easier.  Others  again  feed  mostly 
by  night  and  retire  by  day  to  the  covert  of  dead  leaves 
on  the  ground  or  beneath  sticks,  and  must  be  sought 
by  the  aid  of  the  lantern.  Such  in  particular  are  the 
caterpillars  of  our  satyrs  and  fritillaries. 

Some  caterpillars,  as  stated  in  the  body  of  this  work, 
pass  the  winter  in  that  state,  either  just  hatched, 
half  grown,  or  nearly  mature.  To  keep  these  safely 
through  our  long  winter  and  prevent  their  recovering 
from  their  dormancy  before  food  for  them  can  be  ob- 
tained in  the  spring,  is  one  of  the  most  difficult  tasks. 
It  is  best,  as  a  general  rule,  to  place  them  in  closed  or 
nearly  closed  vessels,  not  too  small,  in  a  dry  but  cool 
cellar,  and  not  to  move  them  until  their  food  plant  is 
again  in  leaf.  Mr.  Edwards  has  succeeded  well  with 
some  of  those  which  have  eaten  little  or  nothing  before 
going  into  winter  quarters,  by  placing  them  through 
the  winter  in  an  ice-house,  which  would  seem  to  be 
rather  heroic  treatment  at  first  sight  ;  but  in  almost 
any  other  situation  they  are  liable  to  rouse  from  their 


APPENDIX  I.  279 

lethargy  too  early  in  the  spring,  the  critical  period,  no 
doubt,  of  their  life.  For  collecting  caterpillars,  pocket 
tin  boxes  are  the  best  receptacles. 

The  satisfactory  preservation  of  the  caterpillar  for 
the  cabinet  is  far  easier  than  is  generally  supposed. 
For  anatomical  purposes  it  is  much  better  to  dissect 
fresh  specimens,  but  very  much  may  be ,  done  with 
specimens  that  have  been  preserved  in  not  too  strong 
alcohol,  or  in  glycerine  and  carbolic  acid.  For  the 
study  of  the  markings  or  of  the  external  features  or 
form,  nothing  equals  the  method  known  as  inflation, 
where  only  the  pellicle  and  its  appendages  are  preserved, 
and  which  has  the  advantage  of  allowing  the  caterpil- 
lar to  be  readily  placed  in  an  ordinary  cabinet  beside 
the  other  forms  of  the  creature's  life  ;  also  of  preserv- 
ing in  their  natural  relations  all  the  spines  and  hairs 
which  clothe  the  body,  and  of  allowing  these  to  be 
studied  at  pleasure  ;  specimens  preserved  in  any  fluid, 
on  the  contrary,  are  difficult  to  handle  conveniently, 
and  their  examination  is  unsatisfactory  from  the  mat- 
ting of  the  hairs  and  spines. 

The  instruments  necessary  for  inflating  are  a  small 
tin  oven,  a  spirit  lamp,  forceps,  a  pair  of  finely  pointed 
scissors,  a  bit  of  rag,  a  little  fine  wire  and  a  wheat 
straw. 

The  oven  is  simply  an  oblong  tin  box,  about  2£  inches 
high,  2£  inches  wide,  and  five  inches  long  ;  the  cover 
is  of  glass,  and  one  end  of  the  box  is  perforated  by  a 
circular  hole  \\  inches  in  diameter.  The  oven  rests 
upon  a  wire  standard  as  in  the  woodcut  [Fig.  194]. 
No  soldering  should  be  used  upon  the  oven,  as  it  would 
soon  be  melted. 

The  wire  should  be  very  fine  and  annealed  ;  the  best 
is  that  wound  with  green  thread  and  used  for  artificial 
flowers.  It  should  not  be  more  than  half  a  millimetre 
in  diameter.  [Fig.  195.] 

Kill  the  subject  by  a  drop  of  ether  or  by  a  plunge  in 
spirits.  Then  placing  the  caterpillar  in  the  left  hand, 
so  as  to  expose  its  hinder  extremity  beyond  the  gently 


280 


APPENDIX  I. 


closed  thumb  and  first  two  fingers,  enlarge  the  vent 
slightly  at  the  lower  edge  by  a  vertical  cut  with  the 
scissors  ;  next  lay  the  larva  either  upon  bibulous  paper 
on  the  table,  or  upon  soft  cotton  cloth  held  in  the  left 


FIG.  194.—  Oven  and  lamp  for  preparing  caterpillars  by  inflation. 

hand,  and  press  the  extremity  of  the  body  with  one 
finger,  always  with  the  interposition  of  cloth  or  paper, 
so  as  to  force  out  some  of  the  contents  of  the  body  ; 
this  process  is  continued  from  points  successively  far- 
^ier  back,  a  slight  additional  portion 
of  the  contents  of  the  body  being 
gently  pressed  out  with  each  new 
g  movement.  Throughout  all  this  pro- 
x  19.  cess  reat  care  should  be  taken  lest  the 


skin  should  be  abraded  by  too  violent  pressure,  and 
lest  any  of  the  contents  of  the  body  soil  its  ex- 
terior or  become  entangled  in  the  hairs  or  spines  ; 
to  avoid  the  latber,  the  caterpillar  should  be  frequently 


APPENDIX  I.  281 

removed  to  a  clean  part  of  the  cloth.  When  a 
portion  of  the  intestinal  tube  itself  becomes  extruded, 
it  should  be  seized  with  a  pair  of  strong  forceps,  and, 
the  head  remaining  in  the  secure  hold  of  the  left  hand, 
the  tube  should  be  forcibly  but  steadily  torn  from  its 
attachments  ;  with  this  most  of  the  contents  of  the 
body  will  be  withdrawn,  and  a  delicate  pressure  passing 
with  a  rolling  motion  from  the  head  toward  the  tail 
will  reduce  the  subject  to  a  mere  pellicle. 

The  alcohol  lamp  is  now  lighted  and  placed  in  posi- 
tion beneath  the  oven  ;  a  wheat  straw  is  selected,  of 
the  proper  size  to  enter  the  enlarged  vent,  and  the  tip, 
after  being  cut  diagonally  with  sharp  scissors  or  a  knife, 
is  moistened  a  little  in  the  mouth  (to  prevent  too  great 
adhesion  of  the  skin  to  the  straw)  and  carefully  intro- 
duced into  the  opening  of  the  caterpillar  ;  the  process 
may  be  aided  by  blowing  gently  through  the  straw. 
When  the  skin  is  slipped  upon  all  sides  of  the  straw  to 
the  distance  of  about  a  fifth  of  an  inch,  without  any 
folding  of  the  skin  and  so  that  both  the  anal  prolegs 
protrude,  a  short  delicate  pin  (Edelston  and  Williams, 
No.  19,  is  best)  is  passed  through  the  anal  plate  and 
the  straw. 

By  this  time  the  oven  will  be  sufficiently  heated  to 
commence  the  drying  process,  which  consists  simply  in 
keeping  the  caterpillar  in  the  oven,  extended  horizon- 
tally by  blowing  gently  and  steadily  through  the  straw, 
as  one  uses  a  blow-pipe.  Too  forcible  inflation  will 
make  the  caterpillar  unsightly  by  distending  unnatu- 
rally any  spot  that  may  have  been  weakened  or  bruised 
in  the  previous  operation  ;  the  caterpillar  should  be 
kept  slowly  but.  constantly  turning,  and  no  harm  will 
result  from  withdrawing  the  creature  from  the  oven 
and  allowing  it  to  collapse,  to  gain  breath  or  rest ;  only 
this  relaxation  should  be  very  brief.  The  caterpillar 
should  be  first  introduced  into  the  oven  while  inflated 
by  the  breath,  and  so  placed  that  the  hinder  extremity 
shall  be  in  the  hottest  part,  directly  above  the  flame, 
for  it  is  essential  that  the  animal  should  dry  from  be- 


282  APPENDIX  I. 

hind  forward  ;  yet  not  altogether,  for  as  soon  as  the 
hinder  part  has  begun  to  stiffen  (which  can  readily  be 
detected  by  withholding  the  breath  for  a  moment)  the 
portion  next  in  front  should  receive  partial  attention, 
and  the  caterpillar  moved  backward  and  forward,  round 
and  round  over  the  flame.  During  this  process  any 
tendency  of  the  caterpillar  to  assume  unnatural  posi- 
tions may  be  corrected — at  least  in  part — by  with- 
drawing it  from  the  oven  and  manipulating  it  ;  during 
inflation,  the  parts  about  the  head  should  be  the  last  to 
dry  and  should  be  kept  over  the  flame  until  a  rather 
forcible  touch  will  not  cause  it  to  bend. 

To  secure  the  best  results,  it  is  essential  that  the 
oven  should  not  be  too  hot  ;  the  flame  should  not  be 
more  than  an  inch  high,  and  its  tip  should  be  one  or 
two  inches  from  the  bottom  of  the  oven. 

When  the  skin  of  the  caterpillar  will  yield  at  no 


FIG.  196.— Wire  bent  into  shape  to  insert  into  the  caterpillar  ;  not  enlarged. 

point,  it  is  ready  for  mounting.  The  pin  is  taken 
from  the  straw,  and  the  caterpillar  skin,  which  often 
adheres  to  the  straw,  must  be  gently  removed  with 
some  delicate,  blunt  instrument,  or  with  the  finger 
nail. 

A  piece  of  wire  a  little  more  than  twice  the  length  of 
the  caterpillar  is  next  cut,  and,  by  means  of  forceps, 
bent  as  in  Fig.  196,  the  tips  a  little  incurved  ;  a  lit- 
tle shellac*  is  placed  at  the  distal  extremity  of  the 
loop,  the  wire  is  held  by  the  forceps  so  as  to  prevent 
the  free  ends  of  the  wire  from  spreading,  and  they  are 
introduced  into  the  empty  body  of  the  caterpillar  as  far 
as  the  forceps  will  allow  ;  holding  the  loop  and  gently 
opening  the  forceps,  the  caterpillar  is  now  pushed  over 

*  To  prepare  this,  the  sheets  of  dark  shellac  should  be  prefer- 
red to  the  light,  and  dissolved  in  forty  per  cent  alcohol. 


<?  7*    0:&' 

the  wire  with  extreme  care,  until  the  hinder  extremity 
has  passed  half-way  over  the  loop,  and  the  shellac  has 
smeared  the  interior  sufficiently  to  hold  the  caterpillar 
in  place  when  dry  ;  the  extremities  of  the  parted  wires 
should  reach  nearly  to  the  head.  Nothing  remains 
hut  to  curve  the  doubled  end  of  the  wire  tightly  around 
a  pin  with  a  pair  of  strong  forceps  and  to  place  the 
specimen,  properly  labelled,  in  a  place  where  it  can  dry 
thoroughly  for  several  days  before  removal  to  the  cabi- 
net. 

For  more  careful  preservation  and  readier  handling, 
each  specimen  may  be  placed  in  a  glass  tube,  like  the 
test  tube  of  the  chemist.  The  wire  is  then  first  bent  in 
the  middle  and  the  bent  end  inserted  in  a  hole  bored  in 
the  smaller  end  of  a  cork  of  suitable  size,  so  as  nearly 
to  pass  through  it  ;  the  loops  are  then  formed  as  above  ; 
both  ends  of  the  cork  are  varnished,  and  a  label  pasted 
around  the  portion  of  the  cork  which  enters  the  tube, 
thus  guarding  both  specimen  and  label  from  dust,  and 
the  latter  from  loss  or  misplacement.  After  two  or 
three  days  the  cork  with  the  caterpillar  attached  is 
placed  in  its  corresponding  tube,  and  the  tube  may  be 
freely  handled. 

Modifications  of  this  system  will  occur  to  every  one. 
Dr.  Gemminger  uses  a  syringe  for  the  extraction  of  the 
contents  as  well  as  for  the  inflation  of  the  emptied  skin. 
For  an  oven,  the  Vienna  entomologists  employ  an 
ordinary  gas  chimney,  open  at  both  ends  and  inserted 
in  a  sand  bath,  which  prevents,  perhaps,  the  danger  of 
too  great  heat. 

In  rearing  caterpillars  for  the  after  stages,  season- 
able care  must  always  be  taken  to  provide  a  suitable 
place  in  the  breeding  cage  for  the  chrysalis  to  suspend 
itself  :  a  twig  for  such  as  prefer  such  situations  ;  a  bit 
of  shingle  near  the  top  of  the  cage  for  those  that  sus- 
pend themselves  by  the  tail,  or  fasten  themselves  pref- 
erably to  flat  surfaces  ;  leaves  for  those  that  construct 
some  sort  of  a  cocoon.  The  search  for  chrysalids  in 
the  open  air  is  not  likely  to  meet  with  great  success 


284  APPENDIX  I. 

excepting  in  a  few  instances,  sncli  as  the  imported 
Cabbage  butterfly,  whose  chrysalids  can  be  found  in  only 
too  great  abundance  beneath  palings  or  on  the  under 
edge  of  clapboards  on  farm  houses  ;  those  of  the  blues 
and  their  allies  may  often  be  found  beneath  stones,  but 
one  must  be  an  enthusiast  to  follow  the  search  at  all 
successfully  ;  such  as  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  general 
entomologist  must  be  counted  as  clear  gain  ;  yet  these 
will  often  repay  him  who  studies  also  the  parasites  of 
butterflies,  so  often  are  they  found  to  be  infested. 

The  preservation  of  chrysalids  with  their  colors  is 
easy  for  all  that  are  not  of  some  green  tint  ;  and  these 
are  few.  Long-lived  chrysalids  are  not  easily  killed  ex- 
cepting by  extreme  dryness.  Some  will  survive  a 
twelve  hours'  plunge  in  alcohol,  and  those  that  could 
not  would  generally  lose  some  of  their  colors  by  the  im- 
mersion. Dry  heat  is  the  best  method,  but  it  should 
be  accompanied  after  death  by  further  drying  after  an 
opening  has  been  made  into  the  body,  lest  the  contents 
should  decay.  Parasitized  specimens  form  the  best 
material  for  the  cabinet,  but  even  shells  from  which 
the  inmate  has  escaped  can  by  careful  manipulation 
and  a  little  glue  have  their  separated  parts  so  joined 
as  to  answer  fairly  the  desired  purpose.  Solid  speci- 
mens can  be  pinned  through  one  side  of  the  thorax, 
but  the  mere  pellicle  should  have  the  hooks  of  the  tail 
securely  fastened  to  a  little  ball  of  cotton  wool  or  bit 
of  felt,  through  which  the  pin  may  be  passed.  It  is  not 
easy  to  glue  empty  chrysalids  permanently  to  cards,  and 
these  are  very  apt  to  hide  the  parts  one  wishes  at  some 
future  time  to  examine.  Skilful  persons  may  attain 
some  success  with  thin-skinned  chrysalids,  like  that  of 
the  Monarch,  for  instance,  the  shape  of  which  is  difficult 
to  retain,  by  removing  the  contents  through  a  small 
opening  at  one  side  and  stuffing  with  cotton. 

The  best  form  of  net  for  the  capture  of  butterflies  is 
a  bag  fastened  to  a  hoop  or  ring  of  some  sorb,  to  which 
a  handle  may  be  attached.  The  hoop  should  be  made 
of  galvanized  iron  wire,  forming  a  circle  about  twelve 


APPENDIX  I. 


285 


to  fourteen  inches  in  diameter,  and  the  bag,  made  of 
double  bobbinet  and  attached  to  the  wire  by  strong  linen 
or  cotton,  should  taper  regularly,  have  a  rounded  bot- 
tom, and  be  about  thirty  inches  long,  so  as  to  double 
over  the  net  and  have    a    few  inches  to  spare.     By 
bending  the  two    ends   of  the  wire,   as   in   Pig.    197, 
they  can   be  dropped  into  a  brass  tube 
and  securely  fixed   in   place   by  a  tight 
plug   of   hard  wood,  leaving   the   other 
end  of  the  tube  open  for  the  insertion 
of  a  removable  handle  ;  or  a  very  con- 
venient form  of  net   can   be  construct- 
ed  on    the   following    plan    shown    in 
Fig.    198,    and   thus   described   by  Mr. 
Riley  :  "  Take  two  pieces  of  stout  wire, 
each  about  twenty   inches   long ;    bend 
them  half  circularly  and  join  at  one  end 
by  a  folding  hinge  having  a  check  on 
one  side  (Z»).     The  other  ends  are  bent 
and  beaten  into  two  square  sockets  (/), 
which  fit  to  a  nut  sunk  and  soldered  into 
one  end  of  a  brass  tube  (d).     When  so 
fitted  they  are  secured  by  a  large-headed    ££tnet  ha~ndl< 
screw  (e),  threaded  to  fit  into  the  nut- 
socket,  and  with  a  groove  wide  enough  to  receive  the 
back    of    a   common   pocket-knife   blade.      The   wire 
hoop   is  easily  detached  and  folded,  as  at  c,  for  con- 
venient carriage  ;  and  the  handle  may  be  made  of  any 
desired  length  by  cutting  a  stick  and  fitting  it  into  the 
hollow  tube  «,  which  should  be  about  six  inches  long." 
The  stick  should  be  about  four  feet  long.     Mr.  Lintner 
makes  use  of  a  rod  with  a  head  [Fig.  199]  screwed  to 
one  end,  in  which  to  fasten  an  elastic  brass  ribbon,  on 
which  the  net  is  drawn,  but  which  when  not  in  use 
may  be  placed  inside  the  hat,  while  the  stick  serves  as 
a  cane,  and  the  head  and  bag  may  be  placed  in  the 
pocket.     An  entomologist  becomes  a  less  conspicuous 
personage  with  such  an  outfit. 

The  "  chase"  for  butterflies  should  rarely  be  a  ques- 


FIG.  197. —Net 
frame  for  butter- 
flies ;  a,  wire-ring, 
with  ends  bent  to 
insert  into  the  fer- 
rule b ;  c,  point 
where  the  plug 


286 


APPENDIX  /. 


tion  of  speed  ;  caution  and  stratagem  are  better  arts  ; 
a  butterfly  should  rarely  be  alarmed,  or  the  game  is 


lost 


FIG.  198. — Folding  net  frame,  explained  in  the  text. 

intent  upon  a  flower,  one  may  even  be  captured 
with  the  fingers  by  slow  approach  upon 
the  shady  side  ;  many  have  the  habit  of 
returning  to  a  twig  they  have  left,  and  can 
be  captured  by  lying  in  wait  near  the  spot ; 
others  will  course  up  and  down  a  roadside, 
a  forest  lane,  or  a  hedgerow,  and  may  be 
easily  netted  by  taking  advantage  of  this 
habit.  Nor  should  it  be  forgotten  that 
not  a  few  are  very  limited  indeed  in  the 
selection  of  their  haunts,  and  every  kind 
of  spot  should  be  visited  ;  some  confine 
their  flight  to  marshy  spots  and  even  to 
particular  bogs  ;  some  prefer  the  open 
fields  ;  pastures  where  thistles  and  other 
weeds  are  in  flower  attract  a  great  crowd  ; 


FIG.  199.— Net- 
head  for  a  remov- 
able frame. 


APPENDIX  /.  287 

others  may  be  found  in  openings  in  the  forest  where 
the  fire- weed  conceals  the  charred  timber  beneath  its 
panicles  of  blue  flowers  ;  one  will  not  look  in  vain  upon 
the  golden-rods  and  blossomed  vines  which  fringe  the 
roadside  or  stone  walls  ;  the  shrubbery  which  loves  the 
margin  of  slender  streams  or  the  edge  of  thickets  is  a 
favorite  haunt  of  many  ;  sheltered  valleys  with  their 
varying  verdure  are  always  a  choice  resort  of  the  ento- 
mologist ;  but  even  the  tops  of  rugged  mountains  or 
sandy  wastes  given  to  sorrel  and  feeble  grasses  wilt 
yield  their  quota  ;  the  garden  too,  the  vegetable  field, 
and  even  the  roadside  puddles  must  not  be  neglected. 

One  soon  learns  to  capture  with  a  dexterous  turn  of 
the  net,  and  no  description  of  the  method  is  worth 
anything  beside  a  very  little  experience  :  when  captured 
the  net  should  be  turned  to  prevent  escape  and  the  but- 
terfly gently  seized  from  outside  the  net,  with  the  wings 
back  to  back  to  prevent  its  struggling  and  so  bruising 
itself  ;  it  should  then  be  removed  to  the  cyanide  bottle, 
where,  especially  if  placed  in  the  dark  pocket,  it  will 
soon  be  motionless,  and  speedily  dies  ;  this  is  the  quick- 
est and  easiest  mode  of  death,  besides  leaving  the  in- 
sect in  the  most  perfect  condition.  The  "  cyanide 
bottle"  is  simply  a  phial  with  a  mouth  wide  enough  to 
readily  admit  the  largest  specimens  (a  smaller  size  is 
better  for  the  smaller  kinds),  into  which  a  little  plaster 
of  Paris  has  been  poured  over  a  small  lump  of  cyanide 
of  potassium  (a  deadly  poison  be  it  noted).  The  cork 
should  be  removed  only  when  necessary  and  for  as  little 
time  as  possible  ;  a  season's  use  will  exhaust  its  best 
strength  even  when  the  utmost  care  is  taken.  Some 
butterflies,  especially  those  having  yellow  colors,  should 
be  left  in  the  bottle  only  a  short  time,  for  they  are  in- 
jured by  too  long  exposure  to  the  vapors,  the  yellow 
turning  reddish.  When  removed,  on  reaching  home, 
or  sooner  if  needed,  they  should  be  pinned  through  the 
thickest  part  of  the  thorax,  and  in  an  hour  or  two,  when 
the  fixity  of  the  wings  which  follows  their  violent  death 
has  passed  away,  removed  to  the  setting  board. 


288  APPENDIX  /. 

The  best  pins  for  butterflies  are  Nos,  2,  3,  and  4  of 
Klaeger's  make.  The  setting  board  needs  no  descrip- 
tion apart  from  the  figure  given  [Fig.  200],  more  than 
to  say  that  beneath  the  groove  a  strip  of  cork  or  pith  is 
attached  to  the  board.  Bits  of  glass  cut  to  different  sizes 
answer  as  well  as  the  card  braces  represented  in  the 
illustration  and  permit  one  better  to  see  whether  the 
wing  is  lying  perfectly  flat.  A  needle  inserted  in  a  han- 
dle is  required  to  move  the  wings  into  the  desired  posi- 
tion, and  "'"  to  set  "  the  antennae  and  legs  in  a  natural 
attitude  ;  to  secure  these  in  the  proper  place  they  are 
supported  by  insect  pins  stuck  into  the  board  upon  one 
side  or  the"  other  of  the  member,  as  required.  The 


FIG.  300L-Se:ting-lr««id. 

butterflies  should  remain  upon  the  setting  board  for  a 
fortnight  or  longer,  and  placed  where  they  will  dry 
readily  but  not  be  exposed  to  dust.  At  the  "expiration 
of  that  time  they  are  ready  for  the  cabinet. 

When  one  is  away  from  home  conveniences,  a  very 
simple  device  for  "transportation  is  to  fold  oblong 
bits  of  paper  (rather  thin  writing  paper  is 
best)  into  "triangles"  as  along  the  dotted 
lines  in  this  sketch  :  into  this  the  butter-  •_ 


fly  is  placed,  its  wings  folded  back  to  back  and 
antennae  tucked  carefully  away.  The  place,  date, 
and  circumstances  of  capture  (or  a  number  corre- 
sponding to  a  journal)  may  be  written  upon  the  paper.  A 


APPENDIX  I.  289 

great  number  may  thus  be  packed  into  a  cigar  box  or 
other  receptacle,  and  spread  for  the  cabinet  at  leisure, 
months  or  even  years  after  collection.  For  this  pur- 
pose moistening  pans  are  needed.  A  glass  or  stone 
ware  dish  is  the  best,  the  top  ground  so  as  to  allow  a 
sheet  of  glass  to  cover  it  perfectly  ;  upon  the  bottom 
moistened  sand  is  placed,  covered  by  fine  brass  wire- 
netting.  A  few  papers  with  their  inclosed  butterflies 
are  placed  in  it,  and  the  cover  left  on  for  twenty-four 
hours  or  thereabouts,  when  the  insects  may  be  handled 
nearly  as  if  just  caught. 

Damp,  grease,  and  museum  pests  are  the  great  de- 
stroyers of  insect  collections.  To  avoid  the  first,  one 
has  only  to  see  that  his  cabinet  is  in  a  dry  place,  with 
a  play  of  air  around  it.  To  avoid  grease,  insects 
should  be  thoroughly  dried  before  being  admitted  to 
the  cabinet,  and  all  use  of  cedar  wood  in  constructing 
the  latter  should  be  avoided.  Against  museum  pests 
one  can  be  safe  only  by  a  constant,  vigilant,  searching 
oversight  of  his  collection,  or  the  use  of  boxes  which 
they  cannot  enter  ;  even  then  care  must  be  taken  not 
to  introduce  them  oneself  by  placing  infested  speci- 
mens in  the  collection  ;  for  this  purpose  it  is  well  to 
establish  a  safe  quarantine. 

For  a  permanent  cabinet  nothing  can  excell  the 
drawers  made  after  the  Deyrolle  model,  now  in  use  by 
the  Boston  Society  of  Natural  History.  I  have  tried 
them  for  six  years  and  find  them  entirely  pest-proof. 
They  are  made  [Fig.  201]  with  a  cover  of  glass  set  in  a 
frame  which  is  grooved  along  the  lower  edge,  and  thus 
fits  tightly  into  a  narrow  strip  of  zinc,  set  edgewise  into 
a  corresponding  groove  in  the  drawer  ;  the  grooves  be- 
yond the  point  of  intersection  of  two  sides  are  filled 
with  a  bit  of  wood  firmly  glued  in  place  ;  it  is  hardly 
necessary  to  say  that  the  sides  of  the  drawer  and  the 
frame  of  the  cover  should  be  made  of  hard  wood  ;  soft 
wood  would  not  retain  the  zinc  strip  ;  the  zinc  should 
be  perfectly  straight  and  the  ends  well  matched  ;  if  this 
be  done  nothing  can  enter  the  box  when  it  is  closed.  A 


290 


APPENDIX  I. 


similar  box  with  a  wooden  rabbet  is  used  at  the  Museum 
of  Comparative  Zoology  at  Cambridge ;  but  it  cannot 
possibly  be  so  tight,  and  requires  hooks  on  the  sides  to 
keep  the  cover  down  ;  it  has  the  advantages  of  greater 
cheapness,  as  it  can  be  made  of  soft  wood,  but  is  at  the 
same  time  clumsier.  My  own  drawers  are  made  of 
cherry  sides,  and  have  also  a  false  front  attached  to 
them,  furnished  with  mouldings  and  handles  so  as  to 
present  a  not  inelegant  appearance  ;  and,  exclusive  of 
the  cork  with  which  they  are  lined,  cost  $2.65  each  ; 


FIG.  201.— Model  of  the  Deyrolle  insect-drawer,  side  view  of  front  end,  with 
the  cover  raised.  D,  bottom  of  drawer  ;  C,  cover  of  same,  raised  a  little  ;  /, 
front  piece,  with  moulding  (m)  and  handle  (A),  glued  to  bottom  piece  ;  sa,  eash  ; 
si,  slit  in  cover,  into  which  the  zinc  strip  (z)  fits  ;  si',  slit  in  bottom,  into  which 
it  is  fastened  ;  g,  bevelled  groove,  to  allow  the  finger  to  raise  the  cover ;  Hv, 
hind  view  of  one  end  of  the  bottom  to  show  the  insertion  of  the  bottom  (b) ;  Be, 
reverse  of  one  corner  of  cover  to  show  the  grooves  filled  beyond  their  junction. 
All  the  figures  half  size. 

they  measure  inside  18f  inches  long,  14  inches  wide, 
and  If  inches  deep,  not  including  the  cork  lining. 

It  is  best  always  to  cover  the  bottom  of  such  drawers 
with  cork  or  pita  wood  or  similar  soft  substance,  as  it 
is  difficult  both  to  insert  and  to  withdraw  the  pins 
readily  in  any  ordinary  wood,  however  soft ;  and  the 
sides  and  bottom  should  afterwards  be  covered  with 
thin  white  paper  for  neatness'  sake. 

Drawers  like  these  are  rather  large  for  small  collec- 
tions, but  any  smaller  size  is  wasteful  of  space  for 
arranging  the  larger  species  of  wide  expanse  of  wing. 


APPENDIX  I.  291 

Some,  however,  still  prefer  smaller  sizes  for  convenience 
of  study,  and  use  boxes  shaped  like  a  quarto  volume,  the 
cover  hinged  and  the  whole  lined  with  binder's  cloth. 
The  volumes  can  then  be  lettered  on  the  back  and 
arranged  as  in  a  library,  and  certainly  have  a  neat  ap- 
pearance. Such  books  can  be  made  safer  either  by  a 
bevelled  wooden  rabbet  where  the  top  and  bottom 
meet,  or  by  arranging  within  a  second  glass  cover,  but 
they  can  never  be  made  so  fully  proof  against  pests  as 
an  unhinged  drawer. 

A  very  common  box,  but  unsafe  so  soon  as  a  collec- 
tion becomes  at  all  large  and  cannot  be  constantly 
watched  in  every  part,  is  a  simple  wooden  box  nine  by 
fourteen  inches  in  size,  in  which  both  top  and  bottom, 
made  separate,  are  put  to  use  by  being  lined  with  cork. 
In  this  case  the  box  must,  of  course,  be  much  deeper. 
Such  cases  can  be  made  in  numbers  for  fifty  cents  each, 
exclusive  of  the  cork,  and  answer  very  well  for  begin- 
ners, but  will  be  discarded  after  a  time  if  the  collection 
increases,  unless  the  owner  has  sufficient  leisure  and 
patience  to  watch  his  treasures  carefully. 

Insect-drawers  of  the  modified  Deyrolle  pattern  de- 
scribed above  will  be  made,  on  ordering  a  considerable 
number,  by  Leander  Greeley,  113  Broadway,  Cam- 
bridgeport,  Mass. 

Entomological  supplies,  such  as  pins,  forceps,  sheet 
cork,  blank  labels,  etc.,  may  be  obtained  of: 

John  Akhurst,  32  Nassau  Street,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Canadian  Entomologist,  London,  Ontario,  Canada. 

The  following  low-priced  books  will  be  found  useful 
to  the  student  of  American  butterflies  : 

Packard,  "Guide  to  the  Study  of  Insects.'7  8vo. 
Henry  Holt  &  Co.,  New  York. 

Harris.  "  Treatise  on  Insects  Injurious  to  Vegeta- 
tion." 8vo.  Orange  Judd  Co.,  New  York. 

Morris.  "  Synopsis  of  the  Described  Lepidoptera  of 
North  America."  8vo.  Smithsonian  Institution, 
Washington. 


292  APPENDIX  I, 

Gosse.  "  Canadian  Naturalist.'  12mo.  London, 
1840. 

Gosse.  "  Letters  from  Alabama."  16mo.  London, 
1859. 

(These  works  of  Gosse  can  only  be  found  upon  occa- 
sion.) 

The  following  existing  publications  of  entomological 
societies  also  furnish  much  information  : — 

"  Proceedings  of  the  Entomological  Society  of  Phila- 
delphia/' 1861-67.  6  v.,  8vo.  Now  called  "Transac- 
tions of  the  American  Entomological  Society,"  1867- 
80.  8  v.,  8vo. 

".The  Canadian  Entomologist,"  1869-80.  12  v.,  8vo. 

"  Psyche."  Organ  of  the  Cambridge  Entomological 
Club,  1874-81.  3  v.  8vo. 

"  Bulletin  of  the  Brooklyn  Entomological  Society," 
1878-80.  3  v.,  8vo. 

"  Papilio  ;"  devoted  to  Lepidoptera  exclusively.  Or- 
gan of  the  New  York  Entomological  Club.  8vo. 
Commenced  in  1881. 

Then  there  are  many  expensive  works  which  are  in- 
valuable, of  which,  the  following  may  be  particularly 
specified  for  their  excellence  or  importance  :  — 

Doubleday  &  Westwood.  "  Genera  of  Diurnal  Lepi- 
doptera," 2  v.,  fo.  London,  1846-52. 

Edwards.  "  Butterflies  of  North  America, >?  2  v., 
4to.  New  York,  1868-81.  The  second  volume  is  not 
quite  completed. 

Abbot  &  Smith.  "  Natural  History  of  the  .Rarer 
Lepidopterous  Insects  of  Georgia,"  2  v.,  fo.  London, 
1797. 

Boisduval  &  LeConte.  "  Histoire  Generate  et  Ico- 
nographie  des  Lepidopteres  et  des  Chenilles  de 
1'Amerique  Septentrionale. "  8vo.  Paris,  1829-42. 

Boisduval.  "  Species  General  des  Lepidopteres." 
Vol.  1,  8vo.  Paris,  1836. 

Hiibner.  "  Sammiung  exotischer  Schmetterlinge. " 
3  v.,  4to.  Augsburg,  1806-24. 


APPENDIX  I.  293 

Hiibner.  "  Zutrage  zur  Sammlung  exotischer 
Schmetterlinge,"  5  parts,  4to.  Augsburg,  1818-37. 

Cramer.  "  Papillons  Exotiques."  4  v.,  4fco.  Ams- 
terdam, 1775-82,  and  supplement  by  Stoll',  1  v.,  4to, 
Amsterdam,  1787-91. 

Felder.  "  Novara  Reise.  Lepidopteren. "  4to.,  n.  d. 
Wien. 

A  convenient  catalogue  of  the  butterflies  of  the  world 
is  Kirby,  "  Synonymic  Catalogue  of  Diurnal  Lepidop- 
tera."  *8vo.  London,  1871,  and  supplement,  1877. 

For  catalogues  of  our  own  butterflies  see  Edwards' 
list  in  the  "  Transactions  of  the  American  Entomolo- 
gical Society,"  vol.  6,  1877,  and  Scudder's  lists  in  vols. 
2  and  3  of  the  "  Bulletin  of  the  Buffalo  Society  of 
Natural  Sciences,"  1875  and  1876  ;  these  last  include 
only  the  two  higher  families.  See  also  Strecker's 
"  Butterflies  and  Sloths  of  North  America,"  8vo,  Read- 
ing, 1878;  and  Gerhard's  "  Systematisches  Verzeich- 
niss  der  Macro-Lepidopteren  yon  Nord-Amerika,"  8vo, 
Berlin,  1878. 

Much  relating  to  our  butterflies  will  also  be  found  in 
the  Proceedings  of  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences  of 
Philadelphia,  the  Boston  Society  of  Natural  History, 
and  the  California  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences,  as 
well  as  in  the  Bulletin  of  the  Buffalo  Society  of  Natural 
Sciences. 

The  best  way  to  commence  the  study  of  butterflies  is 
to  attempt  to  follow  out  the  life-history,  write  the  bi- 
ography in  short,  of  every  kind  found  in  one's  own 
neighborhood.  No  one  place  will  yield  much  above 
one  hundred  species,  and,  if  the  rarer  kinds  be  omitted, 
not  nearly  so  many.  Yet  any  one  who  will  accomplish 
this  will  add  materially  to  what  is  known,  and  he  will 
find  his  way  pleasanter,  his  occupation  more  fascinat- 
ing at  every  step.  He  need  be  provided  at  the  outset 
with  a  very  moderate  stock  of  the  articles  mentioned  in 
the  preceding  pages.  He  should  keep  a  journal  devoted 
exclusively  to  a  record  of  his  daily  notes,  which  will 


294  APPENDIX  I. 

prove  more  and  more  useful  in  each  succeeding  year. 
Commencing  with  the  eggs  laid  by  imprisoned  females 
or  found  in  the  open  field,  he  should  note  every  change 
which  transpires,  describe  and,  if  possible,  draw  in  de- 
tail every  stage,  giving  to  each  separate  lot  a  distinctive 
number,  which  it  should  keep  until  its  name  is  known. 
As  his  stock  enlarges  and  his  knowledge  increases, 
comparative  study  will  supersede  many  of  his  earlier 
descriptions  ;  but  these  will  not  have  been  without  their 
value  ;  they  will  have  cost  no  more  than  they  are 
wortli  ;  his  knowledge  will  have  been  gained  through, 
as  well  as  at  the  expense  of,  his  earlier  work,  none  of 
which  will  he  rightly  regret ;  he  can  therefore  be  neither 
too  minute  nor  too  exact,  nor  can  he  afford  to  relax 
any  endeavor  until  he  has  proved  it  unnecessary. 

He  should  preserve  in  his  permanent  collection  speci- 
mens to  illustrate  every  condition  of  the  creature's  life, 
as  well  as  all  objects  which  illustrate  its  habits  and 
vicissitudes.  Especially  should  all  variations  be  pre- 
served. The  egg  with  the  leaf  upon  which  it  is  laid  in  a 
state  of  nature  ;  not  only  the  caterpillar  at  every  stage, 
but  in  all  the  attitudes  it  assumes,  the  nests  it  weaves, 
the  half  devoured  leaves  to  show  its  manner  of  feeding, 
the  ejectamenta,  the  parasites  by  which  it  is  beset  ;  not 
only  the  chrysalis,  but  the  emptied  skin  ;  the  butterflies 
of  each  brood  together  with  some  preserved  in  their 
natural  attitudes  when  at  rest,  and  when  asleep  ;  and 
such  dissections  of  the  external  parts  as  can  be  sepa- 
rately mounted  and  cannot  otherwise  be  readily  seen  ; 
also  the  wings  and  body  of  the  butterfly  denuded  of 
their  scales,  to  study  the  structural  framework  of  the 
insect ;  and,  when  possible,  dissections  of  the  internal 
parts  preserved  in  alcohol. 

Every  pinned  specimen,  excepting  such  as  illustrate 
the  anatomy  only,  should  bear  upon  the  pin  a  label  giv- 
ing the  place  and  date  of  capture,  and,  when  necessary, 
a  number  referring  to  a  catalogue  or  note  book  in  which 
memoranda  may  be  entered  to  any  extent  that  is  de- 
sired. The  name  of  the  species  may  be  given  on  a 


APPENDIX  I.  295 

separate  label  at  the  head  of  each  collection  of  objects 
which  illustrate  its  history  ;  and  the  name  may  of 
course  also  be  added  at  will  to  any  specimens  which 
once  determined  may  require  redetermination  if  mis- 
placed and  not  specially  marked. 

In  rearing  it  is  essential  that  every  breeding  cage  or 
pot  should  be  marked  with  a  number  or  by  other  means 
to  indicate  its  contents.  Nothing  should  be  left  to 
memory  in  this  particular.  Nor  should  caterpillars 
which  are  only  presumably  of  the  same  species  be  placed 
in  the  same  cage,  as  there  are  many  allied  kinds  which 
are  almost  indistinguishable  at  sight,  and  a  lack  of  ex- 
actitude here  will  vitiate  one's  observations. 

Any  one  pursuing  vigorously  such  a  course  of  study 
and  collection  of  native  butterflies  will  be  enchanted  to 
see  how  fascinating  the  study  is,  how  rapidly  his  collec- 
tion grows,  what  an  endless" source  of  interest  attaches 
to  these  humble  but  exquisite  creatures,  and  into  how 
many  lines  of  real  investigation  his  steps  are  tending. 
No  one  can  undertake  it  without  being  himself  the 
gainer  by  it,  and  without  infusing  others  with  his  own 
ever  fresh  enthusiasm. 


APPENDIX  II. 

SYSTEMATIC    LIST   OF   BUTTERFLIES    MENTIONED   IN   THE    TEXT, 

WITH  THEIR   SCIENTIFIC   AND  POPULAR  NAMES,  AND 

REFERENCES   TO   THE   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Family  NYMPH  ALES  Linne  [Nymphalidae  Steph.]. 
Brush-footed  Butterflies. 

Subfamily  PBAETOKES  Herbst. 

Tribe  OREADES  Borkhausen  [Satyridae  Swains]. 
Satyrs,  or  Meadow  Browns. 

Genus  Oeneis  Hiibner  [Chionobas  Boisd.].. 

Oeneis  semidea   (Say).     White  Mountain  Butterfly. 

(Fig.  192,  butterfly.) 
Genus  Cercyonis  Speyer. 

Cercyonis  Alope  (Fabr.).  Blue-eyed  Grayling.  (Figs. 
143,  144,  butterfly ;  fig.  57,  chrysalis ;  figs.  37,  38, 
caterpillar — details. ) 
Genus  Satyrodes  Scudder. 

Satyrodes    Eurydice   (Linn.-Johanns.)    [Boisduvalii 
Harr.].   Eyed  Brown.   (Fig.  120,  butterfly  ;  figs.  19, 
36,  caterpillar — details.) 
Genus  Cissia  Doubleday. 

Cissia  Eurytus  (Fabr.)  \Eurytris  Fabr.].  Little 
Wood  Satyr.  (Fig.  121,  butterfly ;  fig.  177,  but- 
terfly— details.) 

Subfamily  HELICONIDAE  Swains. 

Tribe  FESTIVI  Fabricius  [Danaides  Boisd.]. 
Danaids. 


298  APPENDIX  II. 

Genus  Danais  Latreille. 

Danais  Plexippus  (Linn.).  Monarch  ;  or  Milk-weed 
Butterfly.  (Fig.  106,  butterfly  ;  figs.  67,  68,  69,  70, 
71,  73,  74,  79,  107,  butterfly-details;  fig.  61, 
chrysalis  ;  figs.  48,  78,  chrysalis — details  ;  fig.  22, 
caterpillar;  figs.  21,  33,  39,  78,  caterpillar— de- 
tails ;  figs.  17,  18,  egg.) 

Tribe  HELICONII  Linne.    Heliconians  (no  species 
mentioned. — Tropical  America). 

Subfamily  1ST  A  JADES  Borkhausen  [Nymplialinae 
Bates].     Naiads  or  Nymphs. 

Tribe  ARGOI^AUTAE  Cramer  \Apaturidae  Staud.- 

Wocke]. 

Genus  Auaea  Hubner  [Paphia  Auct.,  nee  Fabr.]. 
Anaea  Andria  (Scudd.).    Goat-weed  Butterfly.    (Figs. 
156,  157,  butterfly;  fig.  97,  chrysalis  and  caterpil- 
lar-figs. 20,  88,  caterpillar— details.) 
Genus    Chlorippe    Boisduval    [Apatura    Auct.,    nee 

Fabr.  ] .     Emperors. 
Chlorippe     Herse     (Fabr.)     [Clyton     Boisd.-LeC.]. 

Tawny  Emperor.     (Figs.  182,  183,  all  stages.) 
Chlorippe     Lycaon    (Fabr.)    [Celtis    Boisd.-LeC.]. 
(Figs.  184,  185,  all  stages.) 

Tribe   ARCHONTES  Herbst   [Limenitides  Butl.]. 

Sovereigns. 

Genus   Basilarchia    Scudder    [Limenitis    Auct.,    nee 
Fabr.].     Purples. 

Basilarchia  Arthemis  (Drury).  Banded  Purple. 
(Fig.  99,  hibernaculum.) 

Basilarchia  Astyanax  (E'abr.)  [Ursula  Fabr.].  Red- 
spotted  Purple.  (Fig.  40%  spine  of  caterpillar.) 

Basilarchia  Archippus  (Cram.)  [Disippus  Boisd.- 
LeC.].  Viceroy.  (Fig.  84,  butterfly;  fig.  62, 
chrysalis;  fig.  29,  caterpillar;  figs.  29,  40b,  85, 
86,  87,  98,  caterpillar— details ;  figs.  2,  16,  egg.) 


APPENDIX  IL  299 

Tribe  PRAEFECTI  Herbst  [Vanessidae  Dup.]. 

Angle-wings. 
Genus  Epicalia  "Westwood    (no    species  mentioned — 

South  America). 
Genus  Polygonia  Hiibner  [Grapta  Kirby]. 

Polygonia  interrogation  is  (Fabr.).    Violet  Tip.    (Fig. 

142,  butterfly;  fig.  181,  chrysalis.) 
Polygonia  comma  (Harr.).     Orange  Comma.     (Fig. 

83,  cluster  of  eggs.) 
Polygonia   Faunus  (Edw.).     Green   Comma.     (Fig. 

126,  butterfly ;  fig.  54,  chrysalis.) 

Polygonia   Progne   (Cram.).     Gray  Comma.      (Fig. 

119,  butterfly.) 
Genus  Aglais  Dalman  [  Vanessa  Auct.  pars.]. 

Aglais  Milberti  (God.).     Nettle  Tortoise-shell.    (Fig. 

127,  butterfly  ;  tig.  82,  cluster  of  eggs.) 

Aglais  urticae  (Linn.).     Small  Tortoise-shell.     (Eu- 
rope. ) 
Genus  Papilio  Linne  [Vanessa  Auct.  pars.]. 

Papilio    Antiopa    Linn.      Camberwell    Beauty,     or 
Mourning  Cloak.     (Fig.   137,   butterfly;   fig.   49, 
chrysalis  ;  fig.  27,  caterpillar ;  figs.  23,  24,  cater- 
pillar— details  ;  fig.  81,  cluster  of  eggs.) 
Genus  Hamadryas  Hiibner  [Vanessa  Auct.  pars.]. 

Hamadryas  lo  (Linn.).  Peacock  Butterfly  (Europe). 
(Fig.  80,  rudiment  of  wing  in  caterpillar.) 

Genus  Vanessa  Fabricius. 

Vanessa  Atalanta  (Linn.).  Red  Admiral.  (Fig.  128, 
butterfly  ;  fig.  72,  butterfly — details ;  fig.  95,  nest 
of  caterpillar  ;  fig.  13,  egg.) 

Vanessa  Huntera  (Fabr.).  Painted  Beauty.  (Fig.  96, 
butterfly.) 

Vanessa  cardui  (Linn.).  Painted  Lady.  (Fig.  134, 
butterfly  ;  fig.  179,  butterfly— details  ;  fig.  41,  cat- 
erpillar— details. ) 


300  APPENDIX  II. 

Tribe  DKYADES  Borkhausen  [Argynnites 
Blanch.].      Fritillaries. 

Genus  Semnopsyche  Scudder  [Argynnis  Auct.  pars.]. 
Semnopsyche   Diana   (Cram.).     Diana.      (Fig.    164, 
butterfly,  scales). 

Genus  Speyeria  Scudder  [Argynnis  Auct.  pars.]. 

Speyeria  Idalia  (Drury).  Eegal  Fritillary.  (Fig.  158, 
butterfly.) 

Genus  Argynnis  Fabricius. 

Argynnis  Cybele  (Fabr. ).  Great  Spangled  Fritillary. 
(Fig.  162,  butterfly.) 

Argynnis  Aphrodite  (Fabr.).  Silver-spot  Fritillary. 
(Fig.  118,  butterfly.) 

Argynnis  Atlantis  Edw.  Mountain  Silver-spot. 
(Fig.  133,  chrysalis.) 

Genus  Brenthis  Hiibner  [Argynnis  Auct.  pars.]. 

Brenthis  Bellona  (Fabr.).  Meadow  Fritillary.  (Figs. 
129,  130,  butterfly.) 

Brenthis  Myrina  (Cram.).  Silver-bordered  Fritillary. 
(Fig.  131,  butterfly;  fig.  132,  chrysalis;  figs.  3,  9, 
egg-) 

Tribe  HAMADRYADES  Borkh.   [Melitaeidae 
Newm.  ] .     Orescent-spots. 

Genus  Euphydryas  Scudder  [Melitaea  Auct.  pars.]. 

Euphydryas  Phaeton  (Drury).  Baltimore.  (Fig.  89, 
butterfly  ;  fig.  176,  butterfly— details  ;  fig.  90,  nest 
of  caterpillar  ;  fig.  15,  egg.) 

Genus  Cinclidia  Hiibner  [MelUaea  Auct.  pars.]. 

Oinclidia  Harrisii  Scudd.  Harris's  Butterfly.  (Fig. 
47,  chrysalis  ;  fig.  46,  caterpillar — details.) 

Genus  Phyciodes  Httbner. 

Phyciodes  Tharos  (Drury).  Pearl  Crescent.  (Figs. 
140,  141,  butterfly.) 


APPENDIX  II.  301 

Subfamily  HYPATI  Hiibner  [Libythides  Boisd.]. 

(No  species  mentioned. )    Long  Beaks  ;  or 

Snout  Butterflies. 

Family  KUKALES  Fabr.      Gossamer-winged 
Butterflies. 

Subfamily  VESTA LES  Herbst  [Erycinides  Boisd. ] . 
Virgins  ;  or  Erycinids. 

Genus  Calephelis  Grote  and  Robinson. 

Calephelis  borealis  Grote-Rob.     Large  Metal-mark. 
(Fig.  187,  butterfly;  fig.  175,  butterfly— details.) 

Subfamily  PLEBEII  Cuvier  [Lycaenidae  Steph.]. 
Lycaenids. 

Tribe  EUMAEIDAE  Doubleday  (no  mention). 

Tribe  EPHORI  Herbst  [Theclides  Kirby]. 
Hair-streaks. 

Genus  Incisalia  Minot  [Thecla  Auct.  pars.]. 
Incisalia  Niphon  (Hiibner).      Banded  Elfin.     (Fig. 

186,  butterfly.) 
Incisalia  Augustus  (Kirby).    Brown  Elfin.    (Fig.  123, 

butterfly.) 

Genus  Strymon  Hiibner  [Thecla  Auct.  pars.]. 

Strymon    Titus    (Fabr.)    [Mopsus   Hiibn.].      Coral 

Hair- streak. 
Genus  Erora  Scudder  \Tliecla  Auct.  pars.]. 

Erora  laeta  (Edw.).     Spring  Beauty. 
Genus  Uranotes  Scudder  [Thecla  Auct.  pars.]. 

Uranotes  Melinus  (Hiibn.),  [humuli  Harr. ;  hyperici 
Boisd. -Le  0.].      Gray   Hair-streak,   or    Hop-vine 
Thecla.     (Fig.  124,  butterfly.) 
Genus  Thecla  Fabricius. 

Thecla     Calanus     (Hiibn.).      Banded     Hair-streak. 
(Fig.  122,  butterfly;  fig.  160,  butterfly— details.) 


302  APPENDIX  //. 

Tribe  ADOLESCENTES  Hiibner  [Lycaenides  Kirby]. 
Blues. 

Genus  Everes  Htibner  [Lycaena  Auct.  pars.]. 

Everes  Comyntas  (God.).  Tailed  Blue.  (Fig.  125, 
butterfly. ) 

Everes  Amyntas  (Fabr.).     (Europe.) 
Genus  Cyaniris  Dalman  [Lycaena  Auct.  pars.]. 

Cyaniris  pseudargiolus  (Boisd.-LeC.)  [violacea  Edw. ; 
neglecta  Edw.  ;  Lucia  Kirby].  Spring  Azure. 
(Figs.  148,  149,  150,  151,  152,  butterfly;  figs.  34, 
35,  caterpillar — details.) 

Genus  Rusticus  Hiibner  [Lycaena  Auct.  pars.]. 
Rusticus  Scudderii  (Edw.).     Pearl-studded  Violet. 
Rusticus  Argus  (Linn.).     (Europe.). 

Rusticus  Aegon  (W.  V.)  Silver-studded  Blue.  (Eu- 
rope. ) 

Genus  Brephidium  Scudder  [Lycaena  Auct.  pars.]. 

Brephidium Fea  (Edw.).    (Fig.  166,  butterfly,  scales. ) 
Genus  Leptotes  Scudder. 

Leptotes  Theonus  (Let).    (Fig.  167,  butterfly,  scales. ) 

Tribe  VILLICANTES  Htibner  [Polyommatidex 
Kirby].     Coppers. 

Genus  Chrysophamis  Htibner. 

Chrysophanus  Thoe  (Boisd.).    Bronze  Copper.    (Fig. 
117,   butterfly;    fig.   174,    butterfly— details  ;    fig. 
12,  egg.) 
Genus  Heodes  Dalman  [Folyommatus  Auct.  pars.]. 

Heodes   Hypophlaeas   (Boisd.)    \americana    Harr.]. 
American  Copper.     (Fig.   105,   butterfly  ;  fig.   58, 
chrysalis ;  figs.  25,  42,  caterpillar ;  figs.  4,  7,  egg.) 
Genus  Feniseca  Grote  (no  species  mentioned). 


APPENDIX  II.  303 

Family  PAPILIONIDES  Latreille. 
Typical  Butterflies. 

Subfamily  DAK  A  i  Linne  [Pierides  Boisd.]. 
Pierids. 

Tribe  FUGACIA  Hubner  [Rhodoceridi  Steph.]. 
Red  Horns  ;  or  Yellow  Butterflies. 

Genus  Catopsilia  Hubner  [Callidryas  Boisd.  pars.]. 

Catopsilia  Eubule  (Linn.).     Cloudless  Sulphur. 
Genus  Eurymus  Swainson  [Colias  Fabr.  pars.]. 

Eurymus  Philodice  (God.).  Clouded  Sulphur,  or 
Common  Yellow  Butterfly.  (Figs.  102, 103,  butter- 
fly ;  fig.  56,  chrysalis ;  fig.  52,  chrysalis — details ; 
fig.  104,  caterpillar  ;  fig.  42,  caterpillar — details ; 
figs.  5,  11,  egg.) 

Eurymus  Eurytheme  (Boisd.).    Orange  Sulphur. 
Genus  Xanthidia  Boisduval  and  Le  Conte. 

Xanthidia  Nicippe  (Cram.).  Black-bordered  Yellow. 
(Fig.  66,  butterfly — details;  fig.  155,  chrysalis.) 

Tribe  VORACIA  Hubner  [Pieridi  Steph.]. 

Whites. 
Genus  Pieris  Schrank. 

Pieris  rapae  (Linn.).  Imported  Cabbage  Butterfly. 
(Figs.  110,  111,  butterfly;  fig.  165,  butterfly, 
scales  ;  fig.  112,  chrysalis  and  caterpillar.) 

Pieris  oleracea  (Harr.).  Gray-veined  White.  (Fig. 
138,  butterfly  ;  fig.  139,  chrysalis  ;  fig.  44,  cater- 
pillar— details  ;  fig.  10,  egg.) 

Genus  Pontia  Fabricius  [Pieris  Auct.  pars.]. 

Pontia  Protodice  (Boisd.-Le  0.).     Chequered  White. 
(Figs.  135,   136,  butterfly;  fig.  26,  chrysalis  and 
caterpillar. ) 
Pontia  Daplidice  (Linn.).    Bath  White  (Europe). 

Tribe  FRUGALIA  Htibner.    Orange  Tips. 
Genus  Zegris  Rambur  (no  species  mentioned — Europe). 


304  APPENDIX  II. 

Subfamily  PAKNASSII  Latreille.     Parnassians. 
Genus  Parnassius  Latreille  (no  species  mentioned). 

Subfamily  EQUITES  Linne  [Papilionidae  Swains.]. 
Swallow-tails. 

Genus  Laertias  Hiibner  \Papilio  Auct.  pars.]. 

Laertias  Philenor  (Linn.).  Blue  Swallow-tail.  (Fig. 
109,  butterfly ;  fig.  75,  butterfly—details  ;  fig.  59, 
chrysalis  ;  fig.  28,  caterpillar.) 

Genus  Euphoeades  Hiibner  \Papilio  Auct.  pars.]. 

Euphoeades  Troilus  (Linn.).     Green-clouded  Swal- 
low-tail.      (Fig.   173,  butterfly— details ;    fig.    60, 
chrysalis  ;  figs.  50,  51,  53,  chrysalis — details.) 
Genus  Jasoniad.es  Hiibner  [PapiUo  Auct.  pars.]. 

Jasoniades  Glaucus  (Linn.)  \Turnus  Linn.].  Tiger 
Swallow-tail.  (Fig.  153,  butterfly  ;  fig.  6,  egg.) 

Genus  Iphiclides  Hiibner  [Papilio  Auct.  pars.]. 

Iphiclides  Ajax(Linn.).  Zebra  Swallow-tail.  (Figs. 
145,  146,  147,  butterfly.) 

Iphiclides  Podalirius  (Linn.).    (Europe.) 
Genus  Princeps  Hiibner  \Papilio  Auct.  pars.]. 

Princeps  Polyxenes  (Fabr.)  [Asterias  Fabr.].  Black 
Swallow-tail.  (Fig.  190,  butterfly ;  fig.  32,  cater- 
pillar ;  fig.  31,  caterpillar — details.) 

Family  URBICOLAE  Fabricius  \Hesperidae  Leach]. 
Skippers. 

Tribe  HESPERIDES  Latreille.     Larger  Skippers. 
Genus  Epargyreus  Hiibner. 

Epargyreus  Tityrus  (Fabr.).  White-spotted  Skipper. 
(Fig.  191,  butterfly;  figs.  65,  172,  butterfly— de- 
tails ;  fig.  180,  cocoon  and  chrysalis ;  fig.  93, 
chrysalis ;  figs.  63,  64,  chrysalis — details ;  fig.  92, 
caterpillar;  fig.  91,  nest  of  caterpillar.) 


APPENDIX  II.  305 

Genus  Thorybes  Scudder  \_Eudamus  Auct.  pars.J. 
Thorybes  Pylades  (Scudd.).    (Fig.  188,  butterfly;  fig. 


Genus  Thanaos  Boisduval  [Nisoniades  Auct.].    Dusky- 
wings. 

Thanaos   Persius   (Scudd.).      Persius'    Dusky-  wing. 
(Fig.  94,  nest  of  caterpillar.) 

Thanaos  Brizo  (Boisd.-Le  C.)  Sleepy  Dusky-  wing. 
(Fig.  108,  butterfly.) 

Thanaos  funeralis  (Scudd.  -Burg.).    Funereal  Dusky- 

wing.     (Fig.  168,  butterfly,  scales.) 
Thanaos  Ennius  (Scudd.-Burg.).     Juvenal's  Dusky- 

wing.     (Figs.  77,  161,  butterfly—  details  ;  fig.  101, 

chrysalis  ;  fig.  100,  caterpillar.) 

Genus  Pholisora  Scudder  [Nisoniades  Auct.  pars.]. 
Pholisora  Catullus  (Fabr.).     Sooty  Skipper.     (Fig. 
14,  egg.)      . 

Tribe  ASTYCT  Hiibner.     Smaller  Skippers. 
Genus  Ancyloxypha  Felder  \Heteropterus  Harr.,  nee 

Bum.}. 

Ancyloxypha  Numitor  (Fabr.)  [puer  Htibn.  ;  mar- 
ginatus  Harr.].  Wee  Skipper.  (Fig.  159,  butter- 
fly.) 

Genus  Amblyscirtes  Scudder  [Pamphila  aut  Hesperia 
Auct.  pars.]. 

Amblyscirtes  vialis(Edw.).  Roadside  Skipper.  (Fig. 
178,  butterfly—  details.) 

Genus  Ocytes  Scudder  [Pamphila  aut  Hesperia  Auct. 
pars.]. 

Ocytes  Metea  (Scudd.).  Cobweb  Skipper.  (Fig,  45, 
caterpillar  —  details.  ) 

Genus  Atrytone  Scudder  [Pamphila  nut  Hesperia  Auct. 
pars.]. 

Atrytone  Zabulon  (Boisd.-LeC.)  [Hobomok  Harr.  ; 


306  APPENDIX  II. 

Pocahontas   Scudd.].     Mormon.     (Fig.  154,  but- 
terfly ;  fig.  30,  caterpillar ;  fig.  8,  egg.) 
Genus  Anthomastes  Scudder  [Pamphila  aut  Hesperia 

Auct.  pars.]. 

Anthomastes  Leonardus  (Harr.).  Leonard's  Hes- 
perid.  (Fig.  114,  butterfly.) 

Genus  Polites  Scudder  [Pamphila  aut  Hesperia  Auct. 
pars.]. 

Polites  Peckius  (Kirby)  [Wamsutta  Harr.].  Peck's 
Skipper;  or  Yellow-spot.  (Figs.  115,  116,  but- 
terfly.) 

Genus  Thymelicus  Htibner  [Redone  Scudd.  ;   Pam- 
phila aut  Hesperia  Auct.  pars.]. 

Thymelicus  Brettus  (Boisd.-LeC.). 

Thymelicus  Aetna  (Boisd.)  [Otho  Boisd.-LeC.  ; 
Egeremet  Scudd.].  (Figs.  163,  170,  butterfly- 
details.  ) 

Genus  Limochores  Scudder  [Pamphila  aut  Hesperia 
Auct.  pars.]. 

Limochores  Taumas  (Fabr.)  [Cernes  Boisd.-LeC.  ; 
Ahaton  Harr.].  Tawny-edged  Skipper.  (Fig.  113, 
butterfly;  fig.  169,  butterfly,  scales.) 

Genus  Euphyes  Scudder  [Pamphila  aut  Hesperia  Auct. 

pars.]. 

Euphyes  Metacomefc  (Harr.).  Immaculate  Skipper. 
(Fig.  189,  butterfly  ;  fig.  76,  butterfly— details. ) 

Genus  Lerema  Scudder  [Pamphila  aut  Hesperia  Auct. 

pars.]. 

Lerema  Accius  (Smith- Abb.).  Clouded  Skipper. 
(Fig.  55,  chrysalis.) 

Tribe  CASTNIOIDES  Riley.     Castniarians. 
(No  species  mentioned.) 

Other  figures. — 72,    arrangement    of    scales ;    171, 
scheme  to  show  the  affinities  of  the  groups  of  butterflies. 


APPENDIX  III. 

LIST   OF   FOOD-PLANTS  OF   THE   CATERPILLARS   OF   AMERICAN 
BUTTERFLIES    MENTIONED   IN   THIS   WORK. 

Oeneis  semidea. — Car  ex  rigida,  and  probably  other 
sedges. 

Cercyonis  Alope. — Grasses. 

Satyrodes  Eurydice. — Do. 

Cissia  Eurytus. — Do. 

Danais  Plexippus. — Any  species  of  Asclepias ;  Apocy- 
num  androsaemifolium. 

Anaea  Andria. — Uroton  capitatum. 

Chlorippe  Herse.: — Celtis  occidentalis. 

Chlorippe  Lycaon. — Do. 

Basilarchia  Arthemis. — Tilia  americana,  Betula  lenta, 
Populus  tremuloides,  hawthorn,  willow. 

Basilarchia  Astyanax. — Apple,  cherry,  quince,  haw- 
thorn, wild  gooseberry,  willow,  plum  ;  Quercus  ilici- 
folia,  Carpinus  americana,  Vaccineum  stramineum. 

Basilarchia  Archippus. — Willow,  apple,  different  spe- 
cies of  Populus,  Prunus,  Quercus  ilicifolia,  Q.  nibra  f 

Polygonia  interrogation! s. —  Ulmus  americana,  Urtica 
dioica,  BoeJimeria  cylindrica,  Humulus  lupulus, 
Tilia  americana,  T.  pubescens,  Celtis  occidentalis. 

Polygon ia  comma. — Humulus  lupulus,  Ulmus  ameri- 
cana, BoeJimeria  cylindrica,  Urtica. 

Polygonia  Faunus. — Salix  humilis,  Betula  lenta. 

Polygonia  Progne. — Currant,  wild  gooseberry,  elm. 

Aglais  Milberti. —  Urtica  dioica  and  other  nettles. 

Papilio  Antiopa. — Willows,  poplars,  elms. 

Vanessa  Atalanta. —  Urtica  dioica  and  other  nettles, 
Humulus  lupulus,  BoeJimeria  cylindrica,  Parietria 
delilis. 


308  APPENDIX  III. 

Vanessa  Huntera.  —  Gnaphalium  polycepJialum  and 
other  species,  Antennaria  plantaginifolia,  Myosotis. 

Vanessa  cardui. — All  thistles,  Helianthus,  mallows, 
Lappa  major,  Althaea  rosea,  Silybum  Marianum. 

Semnopsyche  Diana. — Viola,  Vernonia. 

Speyeria  Idalia. — Sericocarpus  conyzoides. 

Argynnis  Cybele. — Violets. 

Argynnis  Aphrodite. — Do. 

Argynnis  Atlantis. — Do. 

Brenthis  Bellona. — Do. 

Brenthis  Myrina. — Do. 

Euphydryas  Phaeton. —Ghelone  glair  a,  Lonicera  ciliata. 

Oinclidia  Harrisii. — Diplopappus  umbellatus. 

Phyciodes  Tharos. — Aster  Novae- Angliae. 

Calephelis  borealis. — Unknown. 

Incisalia  Niphon. — Pinus  mitis,  P.  strobus,  P.  taeda, 


IncisaJia  Augustus. — Quercus  ?  Gaylussacia  resinosa  ? 
Strymon  Titus.  —  Conoclinium  coelestinum,  oaks,  wild 

cherry,  cultivated  plum. 
Erora  laeta. — Unknown. 
Uranotes  Melinus. — Humulus  lupulus,  Crataegus  apii- 

folia,  Hypericum  aureum,  Phaseolus,  Pinus  ? 
Tnecla  Calanus. — Quercus  rubra,  Q.  falcata,   Carya, 

Cratagus  ? 
Everes  Comyntas. — Lespedeza  capitata,  Phaseolus  pe- 

rennis,  Galactia. 
Cyaniris    pseudargiolus. — Actinomeris  squarrosa,    A. 

helianthoides,  Apios   tuberosa,  Erytlirina  herbacea, 

Spiraea  salicifolia,  Ceanothus  americanus,  Cornus, 

Ilex  ;  will  eat  willow  in  confinement. 
Rusticus  Scudderii. — Lupinus  perennis. 
Brephidium  Fea. — Unknown. 
Leptotes  Theonus. — Unknown. 
Chrysophanus  Thoe. — Polygonum. 
Heodes  Hypophlaeas. — Rumex  acetpsella. 
Catopsilia    Eubule. — Cassia    marilandica    and    other 

Caesalpinae. 


APPENDIX  III.  309 

Eurymus  Philodice. — Clover,  garden-pea,  lupine,  lu- 
cerne, and  other  species  of  Medicago. 

Eurymus  Eurytheme. — Astragalus  caryocarpus,  Trifo- 
lium,  etc. 

Xanthidia  Nicippe.— Cassia  oUusifolia,  C.  occidentalis, 
G.  marilandica,  Trifolium,  and  other  Leguminosae. 

Pieris  rapae. — Cultivated  Cruciferae,  especially  cab- 
bage ;  also  Reseda  odorata. 

Pieris  oleracea. — Cultivated  turnip,  cabbage,  and  rad- 
ish, especially  the  first. 

Pontia  Protodice. — Cruciferae,  especially  cabbage. 

Laertias  Philenor. — Aristolochia  serpentaria,  A.  siplw, 
Polygonum  convolvulus. 

Euphoeades  Troilus.  — Lauraceae,  particularly  Benzoin 
odoriferum  and  Sassafras  officinale ;  also  Syringa 
vulgaris,  Prunus  scroiina,*  and  Zanthoxylum. 

Jasoniades  Glaucus. — Liriodendron  tulipifera,  Tilia 
americana,  Ptelea  trifoliata,  Prunus  serotina,  P. 
virginiana,  Pyrus,  Crataegus,  Styrax  americana, 
Fraxinus  sambucifolia,  F.  platycarpa,  Catalpa  ~big~ 
nonioides,  Syringa  vulgaris,  Humulus  lupuhis, 
Carya,  Quercus,  Betula  alba,  Alnus  incana,  Sassa- 
fras officinale,  Populus,  Salix. 

Iphiclides  Ajax. — Asimina  triloba,  and  other  species  of 
the  genus. 

Princeps  Polyxenes. — Umbelliferae,  particularly  car- 
rots. 

Epargyreus  Tityrus. — Robinia  pseudacacia,  R.  viscosa, 
Wistaria. 

Thorybes  Pylades. — Clover. 

Thanaos  Persius. — Lespedeza  capitata,  Populus  bal- 
samifera,  Salix  humilis. 

Thanaos  Brizo. — Galactia  glabella,  Cynoglossum  Mo- 
risoni,  oak. 

Thanaos  funeralis. — Unknown,  probably  Leguminosae. 

Thanaos  Ennius. — Filbert,  oak,  Glycine,  Lathyrus, 
and  other  Leguminosae. 

Pholisora  Catullus. — Monarda  punctata,  Ambrosia? 
Chenopodium  album. 


310  APPENDIX  III. 

Ancyloxypha  numitor. — Lespedeza  capitata. 

Amblyscirtes  vialis. — 'Grasses. 

Ocytes  Metea. — Do. 

Atrytone  Zabulon. — Do. 

Anthomaster  Leonardus. — Do. 

Polites  Peckius. — Do. 

Thymelicus  Brettus. — Do. 

Thymelicus  Aetna. — Grasses,  Sablattia  gracili 

Limochores  Taumas. — Grasses. 

Euphyes  Metacomet. — Do. 

Lerema  Accius. — Do. 


INDEX. 


(Illustrations  are  indicated  by  heavy-faced  type.) 


Aberrant  coloring,  191. 

Accessory  glands,  82. 

Accessory  sexual  characteris- 
tics, 192. 

Adaptations  to  surroundings, 
20,27,33,44,48,88,121,  133. 

Admiral,  Red,  see  Vanessa  Ata- 
lanta. 

Adolescentes  (Blues),  19,  23,  26, 
30,  48,  184,  188, 189,  200,  202, 
204,  250,  254,  265,  302. 

Aegerians,  215. 

Aestival  series  in  Brenthis,  144. 

Affinities  of  butterflies,  246. 

Agassiz,  L.,  52,  238. 

Aglais  Milberti  (Nettle  Tortoise- 
shell),  99,  137,  138, 152,  299, 
307. 

Aglais  urticae  (Small  Tortoise- 
shell),  152,  299. 

Air  reservoir,  see  Reservoir. 

Air-tabes,  81. 

Albinism,  180,  183. 

Allen,  J.  A.,  210. 

Alpine  butterflies,  269  ;  of  im- 
pure tints,  161. 

Alternate  dimorphism,  164. 

Alternation  of  habits,  133. 

Amblyscirtes  vialis  (Roadside 
Skipper),  255,  305,  310. 

American  Copper,  see  Heodes 
Hypophlaeas. 

American  and  European  butter- 
flies compared,  151,  261. 

Anaea  Andria   (Goat-weed  but- 


terfly), 14,  23,  103,  111,  185, 
186,  298,  307. 

Ancient  type  of  butterfly,  238. 

Ancyloxypha  Numitor  (Wee 
Skipper),  190, 305,  310. 

Androconia,  199. 

Angle- wings,  see  Praefecti. 

Antennae,  38,  55,  82. 

Anthomaster  Leonard  us  (Leon- 
ard's Hesperid),  124,  306, 
310. 

Antigeny,  180,  236 ;  partial, 
180  ;  melanic,  180 ;  atbinic, 
183  ;  complete  colorational, 
184 ;  structural,  192. 

Aortal  chamber,  82,  92. 

Apatura,  298. 

Apaturidae,  298. 

Appendages  of  tibiae,  65,  252  ; 
of  tarsi,  66  ;  of  abdomen,  74 ; 
of  tongue,  255. 

Archaic  butterfly  ;  its  transfor- 
mations, 232. 

Architectural  forms  in  eggs,  6. 

Archontes  (Sovereigns),  298. 

Argonautae,  298. 

Argynnis  Aphrodite  (Silver- 
spot  Fritillary),  125.  300,  308. 

Aro-ynnis  Atlantis  (Mountain 
Silver-spot),  150, 204. 300, 308. 

Argynnis  Cybele  (Great  Span- 
gled Fritillary),  195,  300,  308. 

Argynnites,  300. 

Astyci  (Smaller  Skippers),  189, 
195,  246,  264,  305. 


312 


INDEX. 


Asymmetrical  organs,  74. 
Atrophy   of  parts,  67;  of  legs, 

253. 
Atrytone  Zabulon  (Mormon),  7, 

23,  182,  305,  310. 
Atrytone    Zabulon,   var.   Poca- 

hontas,  182. 
Azure,  Spring,«ee  Cyaniris  Pseu- 

dargiolus. 

Baltimore,      see      Euphydryas 

Pbaeton. 
Banded  Elfin,  see  Incisalia  Ni- 

phon. 
Banded  Hair-streak,  see  Tbecla 

Calanus. 
Banded  Purple,  see  Basilarcbia 

Artbemis. 
Basilarcbia  (Purples),  9, 29, 113, 

121. 
Basilarcbia  Arcbippus  (Viceroy), 

6,  10,  22,  30,  45,  100,  102, 

103,  112,  133,  206,  236,  298, 

307. 
Basilarcbia    Artbemis  (Banded 

Purple),    99,    112,    113,  298, 

307. 

Basilarcbia  Astyanax  (Red-spot- 
ted Purple),  30, 100, 112,  236, 

298,307. 

Bates,  H.  W.,  188,  191,253. 
Batb  White,  see  Pontia  Dapli- 

dice. 

Beaks,  Loner,  see  Hypati. 
Beauty,  Cauiberwell,  see  Papilio 

Antiopa. 
Beauty,     Painted,  see  Vanessa 

Huntera. 

Beauty,  Spring,  see  Erora  laeta. 
Bernard  Descbamps,  199. 
Black-bordered      Yellow,      see 

Xantbidia  Nicippe. 
Black  Swallow-tail,  see  Princeps 

Polyxenes. 
Blue,  Silver-studded,  see  Rusti- 

cus  Aegon. 
Blue  Swallow-tail,  see  Laertias 

Pbilenor. 


Blue,  Tailed,  see  Everes  Comyn- 
tas. 

Blue-eyed  Grayling,  see  Cer- 
cyonis  Alope. 

Blues,  see  Adolescentes. 

Brain,  82,  88,  93. 

Brentbis  Bellona  (Meadow  Fri- 
tillary),  143,  148,  300,  308. 

Brentbis  Myrina  (Silver-bor- 
dered Fritillary),  7,  8,  144, 
300,  308. 

Brephidium  Fea,  200,  302,  308. 

Brilliancy  in  butterflies  fades  in 
going  north,  161. 

Bronze  Copper,  see  Chrysopha- 
nus  Tboe. 

Broods,  one  a  year,  128  ;  two  a 
year,  130;  three  or  more  a 
year,  130,  141  ;  mixed,  143  ; 
different  in  allied  butterflies 
in  Europe  and  America,  152  ; 
independent  series  in  broods 
of  same  species,  142. 

Brown  Elfin,  see  Incisalia  Au- 
gustus. 

Brown,  Eyed,  see  Satyrodes 
Eurydice. 

Browns,  Meadow,  see  Oreades. 

Brush-footed  Butterflies,  see 
Nymphales. 

Burgess,  E.,  61. 

BUTTERFLIES  :  their  mode  of 
escape  from  the  chrysalis, 
49 ;  their  general  structure 
in  the  perfect  state,  52 ; 
changes  in  the  external  or- 
gans from  caterpillar  to  but- 
terfly, 53  ;  eyes,  54  ;  antennae, 
55  ;  mouth-parts,  56  ;  max- 
illae, 58  ;  their  action,  60  ; 
the  pharyngeal  sac,  61 ;  pro- 
thorax,  63  ;  meso-  and  meta- 
thorax,  64  ;  legs,  64  ;  foliate 
appendage  of  front  legs,  65  ; 
sounds  produced  by,  65  ;  ap- 
pendages of  foot,  66  ;  atrophy 
of  joints  and  appendages  of 
front  legs,  "67  ;  wings,  68  ;  ar- 


INDEX. 


313 


rangeinent  of  scales,  69,  207  ; 
veins  and  their  distribution, 
70  ;  shape  of  wings,  72  ;  pata- 
gia,  73  ;  spiracles,  73;  abdo- 
men, 74  ;  appendages  of  same, 
74 ;  muscular  system,  89  ;  di- 
gestive system,*90;  respiratory 
system,  92  ;  nervous  system, 
92  ;  reproductive  system,  94  ; 
formation  of  wings,  95  ;  rela- 
tions to  landscape,  121  ;  sin- 
gle-brooded, 128  ;  double- 
brooded,  130  ;  triple-brooded, 
130 ;  multiple-brooded,  141  ; 
diverse-brooded,  143. 

Butterflies  of  slow  growth,  132  ; 
those  of  old  and  new  world 
compared,  261  ;  of  New  Eng- 
land, 268. 

Butterflies,  Brush-footed,  see 
Xymphales. 

Butterflies,  Gossamer-winged, 
see  Rurales. 

Butterflies,  Snout,  see  Hypati. 

Butterflies,  Typical,  see  Papili- 
onides. 

Butterflies,  White,  see  Voracia. 

Butterflies,  Yellow,  see  Fugacia. 

Butterfly,  Cabbage,  see  Pieris 
rapae. 

Butterfly,  Cosmopolitan,  see 
Vanessa  cardui. 

Butterfly,  Goat- weed,  see  Anaea 
Andria. 

Butterfly,  Harris,  see  Cinclidia 
Harrisii. 

Butterfly,  Milk-weed,  see  Da- 
nais  Plexippus. 

Butterfly,  Peacock,  see  xlam- 
adryas  lo. 

Butterfly,  White  Mountain,  see 
Oeneis  semidea. 


Cabbage    Butterfly,    see   Pieris 

rapae. 
Caleplrelis  borealis  (Large  Metal 

Mark,  254,  264,  301,  308. 


Callidryas,  302. 

Camberwell  Beauty,  see  Papilio 
Antiopa. 

Caruncles,  26. 

Castnioides  (Castniarians),  246, 
247,  306. 

CATERPILLARS,  13,  33  ;  their 
formation  in  the  egg,  11, 101  ; 
their  head,  14 ;  mouth-parts, 
14 ;  mode  of  spinning,  16 ; 
structure  of  body,  17,  51  ; 
legs,  17;  separation  of  tho- 
racic and  abdominal  tracts, 
18  ;  movement  of  onisciform 
kinds,  19  ;  spiracles,  20,  229  ; 
armature,  21 ;  its  regular  ar- 
rangement, 21 ;  different  on 
thoracic  and  abdominal  joints, 
22 ;  relative  size  of  joints, 
23  ;  retractibility  of  head,  24  ; 
osmateria,  24;  other  exten- 
sile organs,  26  ;  change  in  na- 
ture of  armature  between 
young  and  mature  caterpil- 
lars, 28,  233,  239  ;  change 
to  chrysalis,  34  ;  internal  or- 
gans, 76  ;  muscular  system, 
78  ;  digestive  system,  80  ;  re- 
spiratory system,  81  ;  circu- 
latory system,  83  ;  nervous 
system,  85  ;  reproductive  sys- 
tem, 87  ;  their  object,  eating, 
83  ;  wings  of  butterfly  in  the 
larva,  95  ;  young  caterpillars 
eat  egg-shells,  101  ;  relation 
between  gregarious  caterpil- 
lars and  clustered  egg-masses, 
104  ;  construction  of  nests 
and  webs,  105. 

Catopsilia  Eubule  (Cloudless 
Sulphur),  141,  303,  308. 

Cellular  tissue,  88,  95. 

Cercyonis  Alope  (Blue-eyed 
Gravling,  29,  43,  115,  131, 
168,  297,  307. 

Cercyonis  Alope,  var.  Nephele, 
168. 

Cerura,  250. 


314 


INDEX. 


Chequered  White,  see  Pontia 
Protodice. 

Chionobas,  297. 

Chlorippe  (Emperors),  10,  193. 

Chlorippe  Herse  (Tawny  Em- 
peror), 262,  298,  307. 

Chlorippe  Lycaon,  263, 298, 307. 

CHRYSALIS,  34,  36  ;  the  regions 
of  the  body, 36, 51  ;  append- 
ages, 37  ;  arrangement  of  the 
legs,  38  ;  lid  at  base  of  tongue, 
40  ;  ocellar  riband,  41,  230  ; 
frontal  projections,  42 ;  at- 
tachments, 43  ;  guards  to  free- 
moving  chrysalids,  44;  com- 
parative size  of  thoracic 
joints,  45 ;  prothoracic  spi- 
racle, 46  ;  abdomen,  47  ;  cre- 
master  and  its  hooks,  47 ; 
adaptation  to  surroundings, 
48;  suspension  of,  256;  form  of 
abdomen  in,  258  ;  eclosion  of 
the  butterfly,  49. 

Chrysophanus  Thoe  (Bronze 
Copper),  18,  24, 128, 253, 302, 
308. 

Cinclidia  Harrisii  (Harris*  but- 
terfly), 32,  300,  308. 

Circulatory  system,  83,  92. 

Cissia  Eurytus  (Little  Wood 
Satyr),  126,  254,  297,  307. 

Classification,  238. 

Climatic  influences,  149  ;  on  dif- 
ferent continents,  151  ;  pecu- 
liarities in  America,  154. 

Cloak, Mourning,see  Papilio  An- 
tiopa. 

Clouded  Skipper,  see  Lerema 
Accius. 

Clouded  Sulphur,  see  Eurymus 
Philodice. 

Cloudless  Sulphur.see  Catopsilia 
Eubule. 

Cobweb  Skipper,  see  Ocytes 
Metea. 

Cocoons  in  transformations  of 
butterflies,  256. 

Colon,  82,  91. 


Colonization  of  New  England, 
268. 

Colorational  antigeny,  184. 

Coloring,  159  ;  suffusion  of,  162  ; 
affected  by  physical  condi- 
tions, 163 ;  normal  or  aber- 
rant, 191  ;  different  on  upper 
and  under  surface  of  wings, 
197  ;  its  relation  to  locality, 
210. 

Comma,  Gray,  see  Polygonia 
Progne. 

Comma,  Green,  see  Polygonia 
Faunus. 

Comma,  Orange,  see  Polygonia 
comma. 

Comparison  of  European  and 
American  butterflies,  151, 261 ; 
of  European  and  American  cli- 
mates, 155  ;  of  young  and  old 
caterpillars,  28,  233,  239. 

Copper,  American,  see  Heodes 
Hypophlaeas. 

Copper,  Bronze,  see  Chrysopha- 
nus Thoe. 

Coppers,  see  Villicantes. 

Copulatory  pouch,  82. 

Coral  Hair-streak,  see  Strymon 
Titus. 

Cosmopolitan  Butterfly,  see  Va- 
nessa cardui. 

Cremaster,  47. 

Crescent,  Pearl,  see  Phyciodes 
Tharos. 

Crescent  Spots,  300. 

Cyaniris  Pseudargiolus  (Spring 
Azure),  26, 174, 175, 176, 188, 
190, 236,  302,  308. 

Cyaniris  Pseudargiolus,  var. 
Lucia,  175,  176. 

Cyaniris  Pseudargiolus,  var. 
Pseudargiolus,  175,  176. 

Cyaniris  Pseudargiolus,  var. 
violacea,  175,  176. 

Cyllo  Leda,  216. 

Danai  (Pierids),  246,  303. 
Danaids,  see  Festivi. 


INDEX. 


315 


Danais  Plexippus  (Monarch  or 

Milk. weed  butterfly),  10,  15, 

18,  25,  29, 35,  44,  57,  59, 61, 

62, 63,  70,  82,  118, 119,  120, 

136,  194,  202,  206,  298,  307. 
Darwin,  C.,  58,  188,  190,  191, 

198,  204,  213,  216,  231. 
Derivation    of    New    England 

butterflies,  268. 
Deschamps,  B.,  199. 
Dewitz,  H.,  96. 

Diana,  see  Semnopsyche  Diana. 
Digestive  system,  80,  90. 
Digoneutism,  128. 
Dimorphism,     164 ;     seasonal, 

164,  234;   simple,   167,  235; 

mixed,  169  ;  sexual,  180. 
Distribution  of  butterflies,  260. 
Diversity  of  sexes,  180. 
Dorsal  vessel,  82,  84,  92. 
Dryades  (Fritillaries),  123,  142, 

144, 195,  202,  235,  300. 
Dusky  wing,  Funereal,  see  Tha- 

naos  f  uneralis. 
Dusky- wing,  Juvenal's,  see  Tha- 

naos  Ennius. 
Dusky-wing,  Persius',  see  Tha- 

naos  Persius. 
Dusky-wing,  Sleepy,   see  Tha- 

naos  Brizo. 
Dusky-wings,  see  Thanaos. 

Early  form  of  butterfly,  238. 

Eating,  the  end  of  caterpillar 
existence,  88 

Edwards,  W.,  118. 

Edwards,  W.  H.,  26,  34,  149, 
166,  167, 168, 169. 

EGGS,  6  ;  their  beauty,  6  ;  form, 
7 ;  sculpture,  8 ;  changes  in 
the  interior,  11, 101 ;  duration, 
12,  101  ;  manner  of  laying, 
98 ;  eaten  by  young  cater- 
pillars, 101  ;  relation  between 
clustered  eggs  and  gregarious 
caterpillars,  104. 

Elfin,  Banded,  see  Incisalia  Ni- 
phon. 


Elfin,  Brown,  see  Incisalia  Au- 
gustus. 

Embryonic  changes,  11,  101. 

Emperor,  Tawny,  see  Chlorippe 
Herse. 

Emperors,  see  Chlorippe. 

Epargyreus  Tityrus  (White- 
spotted  Skipper),  46, 48,  54, 
107, 108,  205,  253,  256, 267, 
304,  309. 

Ephori  (Hair-streaks),  23, 30, 48, 
141,  193,  195,  201,  202,  264, 
301. 

Epicalia,  191,  299. 

Equites  (Swallow  -  tails),  24, 
31,  108,  121,  135,  201,  202, 
203,  246,  247,  249,  255,  265, 
304. 

Erora  laeta  (Spring  Beauty), 
187,  301,  308. 

Erycinides,  301. 

Erycinids,  see  Vestales. 

Eudamus,  305. 

Eumaeidae,  301. 

Eupboeades  Troilus  (Green- 
clouded  Swallow-tail),  38, 39, 
41,  44,  253,  304,  309. 

Euphydryas  Phaeton  (Balti- 
more), 9,  99,  104,  105,  106, 
254,  300,  308. 

Euphyes  Metacomet  (Immacu- 
late Skipper),  71,  265,  306, 
310. 

European  butterflies  compared 
with  American,  151,  261. 

Eurymus  (Sulphurs),  105,  161, 
184. 

Eurymus  Eurytheme  (Orange 
Sulphur),  153,  303,  309. 

Eurymus  Philodice  (Clouded 
Sulphur),  7, 8, 31, 40, 42, 115, 
116,  134,  153,  164,  183,  189, 
303,  309. 

Everes  Amyntas,  152,  302. 

Everes  Comyntas  (Tailed  Blue), 
130,  152,  302,  308. 

Extensile  organs,  24. 

Eye-like  spots,  213. 


316 


INDEX. 


Eyed  Brown,  see  Satyrodes  Eu- 

rydice. 
Eyes,  54. 

Families  of  butterflies,  243. 
Feniseca,  268,  302. 
Festivi  (Danaids),  246,  297. 
Food-reservoir,  see  Reservoir. 
Fossil  butterflies,  67,  226. 
Fritillaries,  see  Dryades. 
Fritillary,    Great  Spangled,  see 

Argynnis  Cybele. 
Fritillary,  Meadow,  see  Brentliis 

Bellona. 
Fritillary,  Regal,  see  Speyeria 

Idalia. 
Fritillary,    Silver-bordered,  see 

Brentliis  Myrina. 
Fritillary,  Silver-spot,  see    Ar- 
gynnis Aphrodite. 
Frontal  ganglia,  86. 
Frost  destroys  much  insect  life, 

135,  145. 

Frugalia  (Orange-tips),  265,  303. 
Fugncia  (Red  Horns  or  Yellows), 

31,   126,  135,  183,  194,  202, 

252,  265,  303. 
Funereal  Dusky-wing,  see  Tha- 

naos  funeralis. 

« 

Ganglia,  82,  85  ;  their  distribu- 
tion, 86  ;  movements  in 
change  to  butterfly,  93. 

Ganin,  M.,  96. 

Genealogy  of  butterflies,  245. 

Genera,  characteristics  of,  205. 

Geographical  distribution,  260. 

Geological  record,  67,  226. 

Geometrids,  see  Phalaenidae. 

Glaciation  of  New  England, 
269. 

Glands,  accessory,  82  ;  for  spin- 
ning, 87. 

Goatweed  Butterfly,  see  Anaea 
Andria. 

Gossamer  -  winged  Butterflies, 
see  Rurales. 

Graber,  V.,  96. 


Grade  in  the  structure  of  but- 
terflies: in  their  legs,  253; 
tongue-papillae,  255  ;  trans- 
formations, 256 ;  form  of  ab- 
domen, 258. 

Grapta,  299. 

Grasshoppers  compared  with 
butterflies,  228. 

Gray  Comma,  see  Polygonia 
Progne. 

Gray  Hair-streak,  see  Uranotes 
Melinus. 

Gray  veined  White,  see  Pieris 
oleracea. 

Grayling,  Blue-eyed,  see  Cercy- 
onis  Alope. 

Great  Spangled  Fritillary,  see 
Argynnis  Cybele. 

Green-clouded  Swallow-tail,  see 
Euphoeades  Troilus. 

Green  Comma,  see  Polygonia 
Faunus. 

Gregarious  caterpillars,  104 ; 
butterflies,  117. 

Grote,  A.  R.,  270. 

Groups  among  butterflies,  244. 

Guenee,  A.,  26. 

Habits,  97  ;  in  laying  eggs,  98  ; 
in  the  mode  of  feeding  in 
caterpillars,  102  ;  in  their 
sociality,  104  ;  in  nest  con- 
struction, 105 ;  in  formation 
of  hibernacula,  112  ;  in  sleep 
of  butterflies,  115  ;  in  their 
pugnacity,  116  ;  in  congre- 
gating, 117  :  alternation  in, 
133. 

Hair-streak,  Banded,  see  Thecla 
Calanus. 

Hair-streak,  Coral,  see  Strymon 
Titus. 

Hair-streak,  Gray,  see  Uranotes 
Melinus. 

Hair-streaks,  see  Ephori. 

Hairs  on  wings,  195. 

Hamadryades  (Crescent  Spots), 
300. 


INDEX. 


317 


Hamad ryas  lo  (Peacock  butter- 
fly), 95,  217,  221,  299. 

Hardy,  R.  W.  H.,  105. 

Harris'  Butterfly,  Bee  Cinclidia 
Harrisii. 

Hatching-  of  caterpillar,  101  ;  of 
.  chrysalis,  34 ;  of  butterfly,  49. 

Heart,  see  Dorsal  vessel. 

Heliconidae,  297. 

Heliconii  (Helicouians),  70,  215, 
246,  298. 

Heodes  Hypophlaeas  (American 
Copper),  7,  20,  31,  43,  115, 
117, 140,  162,  166,  302,  308. 

Herold,  M.,  96. 

Hesperia,  305,  306. 

Hesperid,  Leonard's,  see  Antho- 
master  Leonardus. 

Hesperidae,  304. 

Hesperid  es  (Larger  Skippers), 
194,  246,  265,  304. 

Heteropterus,  305. 

Hibernacula,  103, 112. 

Hibernation,  112,  113,  132,  140  ; 
premature,  141,  172,  178 ;  in 
butterfly  state,  136  ;  in  sev- 
eral stages,  139. 

Higgins,  Rev.  H.,  211. 

Histories  of  butterflies,  127. 

Hop- vine  Thecla,  see  Uranotes 
Melinus. 

Horns,  Red,  see  Fugacia. 

Hypati  (Long-Beaks,  or  Snout 
butterflies),  246,  301. 

Hyperuietainorphosis,  233. 

Immaculate  Skipper,  see  Eu- 
phyes  Metacomet. 

Incisalia  Augustus  (Brown  Elf- 
in), 129,  301,  308. 

Incisalia  Niphon  (Banded  Elfin), 
264,  301,  308. 

Indolence,  132. 

Instinct,  100, 101,  133. 

Internal  organs,  76  ;  their  inter- 
relation, 77. 

Intestine,  80,  82,  91. 

Iplnclides,  154. 


Iphiclides  A  jnx  (Zebra  Swallow- 
tail), 141,  146,  154, 169,  170, 
171,  178,  234,  304,  309. 

Iphiclides  Ajax,  var.  Marcellus, 
170,  171,173,234. 

Iphiclides  Ajax,  var.  Telamoni- 
des,  170,  173. 

Iphiclides  Ajax,  var.  Walshii, 
169,  172. 

Iphiclides  Podalirius,  154,  304. 


Jasoniades  Glaucus  (Tiger  Swal- 
low-tail), 7, 100, 108, 118, 147, 
180,  181, 190,  304, 309. 

Juvenal's  Dusky  Wing,  see 
Thanaos  Ennius. 

Kunckel,  H.,  47. 


Lady,  Painted,  see  Vanessa 
cardui. 

Laertias  Philenor  (Blue  Swal- 
low-tail), 22,  43,  71,  99,  122, 
304,  309. 

Landois,  H.,  96. 

Large  Metal -mark,  see  Calephe- 
lis  borealis. 

Larger  Skippers,  see  Hesperides. 

Latitude,  its  influence  on  color, 
160. 

Leaves,  how  eaten  by  cater- 
pillars, 102  ;  nests  of,  105. 

Legs,  atrophy  of,  253. 

Leonard's  Hesperid,  see  Antho- 
master  Leonardus. 

Leptotes  Theonus,  200,  302, 
308. 

Lerema  Accius  (Clouded  Skip- 
per), 42,  306,  310. 

Lethargy,  141,  235. 

Libythides,  301. 

Life  in  America,  characteristics 
of,  154. 

Life-histories  of  butterflies.  127. 

Limenitides,  298. 

Limenitis,  298. 


318 


INDEX. 


Limochores  Taumas  (Tawny- 
edged  Skipper),  124, 202,  306, 
310. 

Little  Wood  Satyr,  see  Cissia 
Eurytus. 

Locality  affecting  color,  210. 

Long  Beaks,  see  Hypati. 

Lubbock,  Sir  John,  231. 

Lycaena,  302. 

Lycaenidae,  301. 

Lycaenides,  302. 

Lycaenids,  see  Plebeii. 

Lyonet,  P.,  78,  96. 


McCook,  Rev.  H.  C.,  26. 
Males,  peculiarities  in    adorn- 
ment, 180. 
Malpighian  vessels,  81,  82,  91, 

92. 

Mandibles,  40. 
Maxillae,  58,  59,  61,  82. 
Meadow  Browns,  see  Oreades. 
Meadow  Fritillary,  see  Brenthis 

Bellona. 
Melanism,  180. 
Melitaea,  300. 
Melitaeidae,  300. 
Meloe,  233. 
Metal -mark,  Large,  see  Calephe- 

lis  borealis. 
Metamorphoses  compared  with 

those  of  grasshoppers,  228. 
Micropyle,  6. 
Milk- weed  Butterfly,,  see  Danais 

Plexippus. 
Mimicry,  115,  206. 
Mixed  hibernation,  139. 
Monarch,  see  Danais  Plexippus. 
Mormon,    see    Atrytone    Zabu- 

lon. 
Mountain  Silver-spot,  see  Argyn- 

nis  Atlantis. 
Mourning    Cloak,    see    Papilio 

Antiopa. 
Mouth  parts,  56. 
Muller,  Fritz,  204. 
Muscular  system,  78,  89. 


Naiads,  see  Najades. 

Najades  (Naiads,  or  Nymphs), 
246,  298. 

Natural  selection  not  the  high- 
est law,  223,  225,  237. 

Nervous  cord,  82,  86,  93. 

Nervous  system,  85,  92. 

Nests  made  by  caterpillars,  105, 
107. 

Nettle  Tortoise-shell,  see  Aglais 
Milberti. 

New  England  Butterflies,  deri- 
vation of,  268. 

Nisoniades,  305. 

Normal  coloring,  191. 

Northern  butterflies  of  impure 

tints,  161. 

\Nymphales  (Brush-footed  but- 
terflies^^*, 246,255, 256, 257, 

I    258,  259,  261,  262,  264,  297. 

Nymphalidae,  297. 

Nymphalinae,  298. 

Nymphs,  see  Najades. 

Ocellar  riband,  41,  230. 
Ocelli  on  wings,  213,  216,  221. 
Ocytes  Metea  (Cobweb  Skipper), 

31,  305,  310. 

Oeneis   semidea  (White  Moun- 
tain butterfly),  98,  114,  270, 

297,  .307 

Oesophagus,  80,  82, 91. 
Oken,  L.,  51. 
Old  and  new  world  butterflies 

compared,  261. 
Orange  Comma,  see  Polygonia 

comma. 
Orange   Sulphur,  see  Eurymus 

Eurytheme. 

Orange-tips,  see  Frugalia. 
Oreades    (Satyrs,    or    Meadow 

Browns),   28,    114,    125,  195, 

246,  247,  248,  258,  264,  297. 
Organs,  internal,  76. 
Origin  of  ornamentation,  207, 

211. 
Origin  of  species  in  butterflies, 

234  ;  through  ordinary  varia- 


INDEX. 


319 


tion,  234  ;  through  seasonal 
dimorphism,  234;  through  un- 
equal lethargy,  235 ;  through 
simple  dimorphism,  235  ; 
through  antigeny,  236. 

Ornamentation,  origin  of,  207, 
211  ;  its  relation  to  structure, 
208,  224;  compared  to  that 
of  Vertebrates,  210 ;  sym- 
metry in,  222. 

Ornithoptera,  249. 

Osborne,  J.  A.,  34. 

Osmateria,  24 ;  their  value  in 
classification,  250. 

Ovaries,  82,  87,  94. 

Oviduct,  82,  87. 

Oviposition,  98. 

Oxygenatioii  of  the  blood,  84. 


Painted  Beauty,  see  Vanessa 
Huntera. 

Painted  Lady,  see  Vanessa 
cardui. 

Palpi,  39,  82. 

Pamphila,  305,  306. 

Paphia,  298. 

Papilio,  299,  304. 

Papilio  Antiopa  (Camberwell 
Beauty  or  Mourning  Cloak), 
18,  21,  37,  98,  163,  299,  307. 

Papilionidae,  303. 

Papilionides  (Typical  butter- 
flies), 244,  246,  248,  257,  263, 
265,  303. 

Papillae  of  tongue,  255. 

Parnassii  (Parnassians),  246, 
265,  304. 

Parnas,sius,  256,  304. 

Patagia,  73. 

Patches  on  wings,  194,  196. 

Patterns  of  color  related  to 
framework  of  wings,  215, 
219,  224  ;  symmetrical,  222. 

Peacock  Butterfly,  see  Hama- 
dryas  lo. 

Pearl  Crescent,  see  Phyciodes 
Tharos. 


Pearl-studded  Violet,  see  Rusti- 

cus  Scudderii. 

Peck's  Skipper,  see  Polites  Peck- 
ius. 

Persius'  Dusky- w^Ujg/'SEs-Tha- 
naos  Persius. 

Phalaenidae  (Geometrids),  208. 

Pharyngeal  sac,  62,  63,  82. 

Pholisora  Catullus  (Sooty  Skip- 
per), 9,  305,  309. 

Phyciodes  Tharos  (Pearl  Cres- 
cent), 166,  300,  308. 

Physical  conditions  affecting 
color,  163, 

Pierids,  see  Danai. 

Pierides,  302. 

Pieris  oleracea  (Gray-veined 
White),  8,  31,  100,  165,  303, 
309. 

Pieris  rapae  (cabbage  butterfly), 
100,  123,  124,  164,  165,  200, 
303,  309. 

Plebeii  (Lycaenids),  19,  23,  24, 
48, 131,  246,  247,  254,  301. 

Plumules,  199. 

Polites  Peckius  (Peck's  Skipper, 
or  Yellow  Spot),  124,  305, 
310. 

Polygoneutism,  141. 

Polygonia,  167. 

Polygonia  comma  (Orange  Com- 
ma), 99,  299,  307. 

Polygonia  Faunus  (Green  Com- 
ma), 42,  136,  137,  299,  307. 

Polygonia  Progne  (Gray  Com- 
ma), 125,  299,  307. 

Polygonia  interrogationis  (Vio- 
let Tip),  167,  235,  257,  299, 
307. 

Polyommatides,  302. 

Polyommatus,  302. 

Poutia  Daplidice  (Bath  White), 
153,  303. 

Pontia  Protodice  (Chequered 
White),  21,  153,  303,  309. 

Praefecti  (Angle-  wings),  30, 117, 
123,  265,  267,  299. 

Praetores,  246,  297. 


320 


INDEX. 


Primeval  butterfly,  238. 

Princeps  Polyxenes  (Black 
Swallow-tail),  24,  148,  266, 
304,  309. 

Prodigality  of  nature,  135,  138, 
145. 

Pugnacity  of  butterflies,  116. 

Pumping  stomach,  see  Reser- 
voir. 

Purple,  Red-spotted,  see  Basil- 
archia  Astyanax. 

Purple,  Banded,  see  Basilarcliia 
Artkemis. 

Purples,  see  Basilarcliia. 

Reaumur,  34. 

Rectum,  81,  82. 

Red  Admiral,  see  Vanessa  Ata- 
lanta. 

Red  Horns,  see  Fugacia. 

Red-spotted  Purple,  see  Basil- 
arckia  Astyanax. 

Regal  Fritillary,  see  Speyeria 
Idalia. 

Relation  between  ornament  and 
structure,  208. 

Reproductive  system,  87,  94. 

Reservoir  for  food  or  air,  82, 
91. 

Respiratory  system,  81,  92. 

Rbodoceridi,  303. 

Riley,  C.  V.,  34,  47. 

Roadside  Skipper,  see  Ambly- 
scirtes  vialis. 

Rudimentary  organs,  40,  58,  67, 
86. 

Rural es  (Gossamer- winged  but- 
terflies), 198,  244,  246,  254, 
256,  257,  261,  263,  301. 

Rusticus  Aegon  (Silver-studded 
Blue),  152,  302. 

Rusticus  Argon,  152,  302. 

Rusticus  Scudderii  (Pearl -stud- 
ded Violet),  152,302,308. 

Salivary  glands,  81,  92. 
Satyr,  Little  Wood,  see  Cissia 
Eurytus. 


Satyrodes  Eurydice  (Eyed 
Brown),  14,  28,  126,  297,  307. 

Satyrs,  see  Oreades. 

Scales,  arrangement  of,  69,  207  ; 
lustreless,  194,  196  ;  of  male 
sex,  199 ;  scent,  204. 

Scent  organs,  24;  their  value 
in  classification  and  occur- 
rence in  insects,  250. 

Scent  scales,  204. 

Seasonal  dimorphism,  164. 

Seasons  of  appearance  in  but- 
terflies, 121,  127 ;  variation 
in,  128. 

Seasons  of  the  year,  effect  of,  on 
butterflies,  149. 

Secondary  sexual  peculiarities, 
180. 

Semnopsyche  Diana  (Diana), 
186,  188,  197,  199,  300,  308. 

Sesiadae,  215. 

Sexes,  diversity  of,  180. 

Sexual  dimorphism,  180. 

Sexual  selection,  204. 

Silk-vessels,  82,  87,  95. 

Silver-bordered  Fritillary,  see 
Brenthis  Myrina. 

Silver-spot  Fritillary,  see  Ar- 
gynnis  Aphrodite. 

Silver-spot,  Mountain,  see  Ar- 
gynnis  Atlantis. 

Silver-studded  Blue,  see  Rusti- 
cus Aegon. 

Sitaris,  233. 

Skipper,  Clouded,  see  Lerema 
Accius. 

Skipper,  Cobweb,  see  Ocytes 
Metea. 

Skipper,  Immaculate,  see  Eu- 
phyes  Metacomet. 

Skipper,  Peck's,  see  Polites 
Peckius. 

Skipper,  Roadside,  see  Ambly- 
scirtes  vialis. 

Skipper,  Sooty,  see  Pholisora 
Catullus. 

Skipper,  Tawny-edged,  see  Li- 
mochores  Taumas, 


INDEX. 


321 


Skipper,  Wee,  see  Ancyloxy- 
plia  Numitor. 

Skipper,  White-spotted,  sec 
Epargyreus  Tityrus. 

Skippers,  see  Urbicolae. 

Skippers,Larger,  see  Hesperides. 

Skippers,  Smaller,  see  Astyci. 

Sleep  of  butterflies,  115. 

Sleepy  Dusky-wing,  see  Tha- 
naos  Brizo. 

Small  Tortoise-shell,  see  Aglais 
urticae. 

Smaller  Skippers,  see  Astyci. 

Snout  Butterflies,  see  Hypati. 

Social  caterpillars,  104. 

Sooty  Skipper,  see  Pkolisora 
Catullus. 

Sounds  produced  by  butterflies, 
65. 

Sovereigns,  see  Arcliontes. 

Spangled  Fritillary,  see  Argyn- 
nis  Cybele. 

Species,  characteristics  of,  205. 

Spermatheca,  82. 

Speyeria  Idalia  (Regal  Fritil- 
lary), 186,  187,  300,  308. 

Spinneret,  82  87. 

Spinning,  16 

Spinning  vessels,  82,  87,  95. 

Spiracles,  73. 

Sports  in  butterflies,  162,  163. 

Spots,  Crescent,  see  Hamadry- 
ades. 

Spring  Azure,  see  Cyaniris  Pseu- 
dargiolus. 

Spring  Beauty,  see  Erora  laeta. 

Stomach,  80,  82,  91. 

Structural  antigeny,  192 ;  in 
form  of  wings,  193  ;  in  veins, 
193  ;  in  patches,  194,  196 ;  in 
folds,  194  ;  in  hairs,  195  ;  in 
legs,  197  ;  in  scales,  199. 

Strymon  Titus  (Coral  Hair- 
streak),  193,  301,  308. 

Suboesophageal  ganglion,  82, 
85, 93. 

Succincti,  258. 

Sucking,  how  performed,  60. 


Suffusion   of  colors  in    butter- 
flies, 162. 
Sulphur,  Clouded,  see  Eurymus 

Philodice. 
Sulphur,  Cloudless,  see  Catop- 

silia  Eubule. 
Sulphur,  Orange,  see  Eurymus 

Eurytlieme. 

Sulphurs,  see  Eurymus. 
Suspensi,  258. 

Suspension  of  chrysalids,  256. 
Swainson,  W.,  258. 
Swallow-tail,   Black,  see    Prin- 

ceps  Polyxenes. 
Swallow-tail,  Blue,  see  Laertias 

Philenor. 
Swallow-tail,       Green-clouded, 

see  Euphoeades  Troilus. 
Swallow-tail,  Tiger,  see  Jasoni- 

ades  Glaucus. 
Swallow-tail,  Zebra,  see  Iphicli- 

des  Ajax. 

Swallow-tails,  see  Equites. 
Symmetry    in    ornamentation, 

222. 

Tailed  Blue,  see  Everes  Comyn- 
tas. 

Tawny-edged  Skipper,  see  Li- 
mochores  Taumas. 

Tawny  Emperor,  see  Chlorippe 
Herse. 

Testis,  82,  87,  94. 

Thanaos  (Dusky  Wings).  121. 

Thanaos  Brizo  (Sleepy  Dusky- 
wing,  121.  305,  309. 

Thanaos  Ennius  (Juvenal's 
Dusky- wing),  74,  114,  194, 
305,  309. 

Thanaos  funeralis  (Funereal 
Dusky-wing),  201,  305,  309. 

Thanaos  Persius  (Persius'  Dus- 
ky wing),  108,  305,  309. 

Thecla,  301. 

Thecla  Calanus  (Banded  Hair- 
streak),  128,  193,  301,  308. 

Thecla,  Hop-vine,  KM  Uranotes 
Mel  in  us. 


INDEX. 


Theclides,  301. 

Thorybes  Pylades,  6,  264,  305, 

309. 
Thymelicus  Aetna,   196,    203, 

306,  310. 
Thymelicus  Brettus,   185,  189, 

306,  310. 

Tibial  appendages,  252. 
Tiger  Swallow-tail,  see  Jasoni 

ades  Glaucus. 

Tone/tie,  58,  59,  61,  82;  papil- 
lae of,  255. 
Tortoise-shell,  Nettle,  see  Aglais 

Milberti. 
Tortoise-shell,  Small,  see  Aglais 

TJrticae. 

Tracheae,  81,  85. 
Transformations,  11,  27,  34,  49, 

53,  89,  101,  256. 
Trigoneutism,  130. 
Tropical  butterflies  of  brilliant 

hue,  161. 
Typical  butterflies,  their  rank, 

248  ;  see  also  Papilionides. 

Uranotes  Melinus  (Gray  Hair- 
Ptreak  or  Hop-vine  Thecla), 
130,  301,  308. 

Urbicolae  (Skippers), 23,  31, 106, 
201,  203,  206,  236,  244,  245, 
246,  247,  248,  249,  251,  252, 
253,  255,  256,  261,  263,  304. 

Vanessa,  299. 

Vanessa  Atalanta  (Red  Admi- 
ral), 8,  64,  109,  110,  139, 
163,  299,  307. 

Vanessa  cardui  (Painted  Lady), 
30,  32,  110,  151,  163,  255, 
299,  308. 

Vanessa  Huntera  (Painted  Beau 
ty),  110,  299,  308. 

Vanessidae,  299. 

Vaudouer,  142. 

Veins  of  wings  ;  their  arrange- 
ment, 70. 

Vernal  series  in  Brenthis,  145. 

Vestales  (Virgins  or  Erycinids), 
246,  254,  260,  301. 


Viceroy,  see  Basilarchia  Archip- 

pus. 
Villicantes    (Coppers),    23,    30, 

123,  187,  188,   191,   198,  201, 

254,  302. 
Violet,  Pearl-studded,  see  Rus- 

ticus  Scudderii. 
Violet  Tip,  see  Polygonia  inter- 

rogationis. 

Virgins,  see  Vestales. 
Voracia  (Whites).  31,  123,  200, 

202,  252,  265,  303. 

Wallace,  A.  R.,  249. 

Webs  made  bv  caterpillars,  105, 
107. 

Wee  Skipper,  see  Ancyloxypha 
Numitor. 

Westwood,  J.  O.,  105,  106. 

White,  Bath,  see  Pontia  Dapli- 
dice. 

White,  Chequered,  see  Pontia 
Protodice. 

White,  Gray-veined,  see  Pieris 
oleracea. 

White  Mt.  butterflies,  269  ;  see 
also  Oeneis  semidea. 

White-spotted  Skipper,  see 
Epargyreus  Tityrus. 

Whites,  see  Voracia. 

Wings  developed  in  caterpil- 
lar, 95  ;  differing  in  color  and 
markings  on  upper  and  un- 
der surface,  197. 

Winter's  destruction,  135,  145. 

Wood  Satyr,  see  Cissia  Eurytus. 

Xanthidia  Nicippe  (Black-bor- 
dered Yellow),  56,  184,  303, 
309. 

Yellow  Spot,  see  Polites  Peckius. 
Yellow,     White-bordered,     see 

Xanthidia  Nicippe. 
Yellows,  see  Fugacia. 

Zebra    Swallow-tail,   see    Iphi- 

clides  Ajax. 
Zegris,  256,  303. 


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